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True apostolic leadership always empowers rather than controls, and empowering a passion for God is one of the most necessary, yet often least cultivated skills, a spiritual leader possesses. ~ Bill Johnson
Excerpt from “Release The Power Of Jesus”
Article adapted from “Gospel 101″
While in prayer, I asked the Holy Spirit to teach me more about holiness and godliness, and the difference between the two. Within an hour, the Holy Spirit said,
“Godliness is to Character what Holiness is to Nature” ~The Holy Spirit
That’s powerful! The Holy Spirit taught me that before we were born again our nature was in sharp contrast to God. Our natural spirit was corrupt and evil. But God provided a way for deliverance from this evil condition.
Look in Ephesians.
Ephesians 2:1-3 – New King James Version
And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
The word nature simply means the way that something is without any outside changes or adaptations—it’s natural.
According to the Bible, by nature we were the children of wrath, meaning that our spirit man was so corrupt, so evil that it could not live in the presence of a Holy God.
God’s Word goes on to tell us that before we were born again, the very wrath of God was against us. Wrath means, anger, rage, and fury.
But for those of us who have accepted Jesus Christ, God has not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation through His precious Son.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 – New King James Version
For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
John the Baptist, a prophet and forerunner of Jesus, spoke prophetically about the coming Messiah when he said,
Matthew 3:10-12 – The New Testament in Modern English (J.B. Phillips)
The axe already lies at the root of the tree, and the tree that fails to produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. It is true that I baptize you with water as a sign of your repentance, but the one who follows me is far stronger than I am – indeed I am not fit to carry his shoes.
He will baptize you with the fire of the Holy Spirit. He comes all ready to separate the wheat from the chaff and very thoroughly will he clear his threshing – floor – the wheat he will collect into the granary and the chaff he will burn with a fire that can never be put out.
In Mathew 3:10 it says, “The axe already lies at the root of the tree”. In the Bible, trees can represent people. John was speaking prophetically to the religious leaders of his day about repentance and turning back to God with a true heart.
He further stated that Jesus would separate the “wheat” from the “chaff”, meaning those who would not repent and accept Jesus as their savior would be like the “chaff” and thrown into the fire.
This phrase “The ax is laid unto the root of the trees” has another powerful meaning.
Once we accepted Jesus as our savior, Jesus laid the ax to the evil root in our nature removing it from our lives. However, He didn’t just stop there. Jesus also gave us “a new nature” in Christ! Let’s look at this in II Corinthians.
II Corinthians 5:17 – Amplified Bible
Therefore if any person is [engrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold the fresh and new has come!
The Bible is very clear that once we are born again, God removes our old nature and creates within us a new one; a nature of holiness. The Apostle Peter tells us that we have the joy and privilege of partaking of God’s divine nature.
II Pet 1:3-4 – New King James Version
As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Peter tells us that we have escaped the corruption of our old, evil nature and have received the very nature of God.
How?
Through being grafted into Jesus Christ, who is the true Vine.
When you heard the truth about Jesus and received the knowledge of the promise that He died for you, you had to make a clear choice; to either accept or reject him. When you accepted Jesus as your savior, He laid the ax to the evil root of your nature and removed it from your life. God then grafted you into His “divine nature” and you experienced what the Bible calls being “born again.” It’s just that simple!
Eph 4:24 – Amplified Bible
And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.
It was God’s original plan from the foundation of this world to have sons and daughters who were created in His image and after his likeness.
Look in Genesis.
Gen 1:26 – New King James Version
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image [holiness], according to Our likeness [godliness]; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Emphasis Mine)
Remember what the Holy Spirit said?
“Godliness is to Character what Holiness is to Nature” ~The Holy Spirit
Article adapted from “Gospel 101″
Charles Hamilton is the founder of cWorshipMusic.com, dedicated to providing worship music and biblical teachings. He is co-author of Gospel 101 and has released four music CD’s: Walk As Children Of Light (1991), The Jesus Project – Worship (2001), Songs Of The Bride – Higher Deeper (2003), and Transparent (2007). Charles and his wife, Suzanne, live in Salem, Virginia, and have six children.
My new ebook “Gospel 101″ is on sale for $3.95 at www.smashwords.com
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The Gospel 101 Bible Study reveals God’s simple plan for all mankind. Readers will broaden their understanding of the gospel plan by investigating key scriptural passages and learning how to apply them to their lives.
Charles Hamilton is the founder of cWorshipMusic.com, dedicated to providing worship music and biblical teachings. He is co-author of Gospel 101 and has released four music CD’s: Walk As Children Of Light (1991), The Jesus Project – Worship (2001), Songs Of The Bride – Higher Deeper (2003), and Transparent (2007). Charles and his wife, Suzanne, live in Salem, Virginia, and have six children.
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This guest post comes to us from David Wilkerson at David Wilkerson’s Blog.
David Wilkerson
The Lord has great joy that the cross has provided us with open access to himself. Indeed, the most glorious moment in history was when the temple veil was rent in two, on the day that Christ died. At that moment, the earth trembled, the rocks rent and the graves were opened.
It was at this very moment that the benefit to God burst forth. In the instant that the temple veil — separating man from God’s holy presence — was torn asunder, something incredible happened. From that point on, not only was man able to enter into the Lord’s presence, but God could come out to man.
He who once dwelt in “thick darkness” didn’t wait for us to come to him, but he came out to us. God himself took the initiative, and Christ’s blood cleared away all hindrances. It was a unilateral move on the Lord’s part, the kind when one party declares, “Enough — I’m going to make peace. I’m going to tear down this wall of partition. And I’ll do it out of my own initiative.”
Before the cross, there was no access to God for the general public; only the high priest could enter the Holy of holies. Now Jesus’ cross made a path for us into the Father’s presence. By his grace alone, God tore down the wall that blocked us from his presence. Now he could come out to man, to embrace his prodigals and sinners of all sorts.
Here is the key to my message: you cannot come into joy and peace — indeed, you cannot know how to serve the Lord — until you see his delight in your deliverance…until you see the joy of his heart over his communion with you…until you see that every wall has been removed at the cross…until you know that everything of your past has been judged and wiped away. God says, “I want you to move on, into the fullness that awaits you in my presence!”
Multitudes today rejoice in the wonderful benefits of the cross. They have moved out of Egypt, and they’re standing on the “victory side” of their Red Sea trial. They enjoy freedom, and they thank God continually for casting their oppressor into the sea. But many of these same believers miss God’s greater purpose and benefit to them. They miss why the Lord has brought them out — which is to bring them in to himself.
by Charles Hamilton
Years ago, I read about a certain species of fish that were caught in a remarkable way. It seems the local natives took their canoes to a certain spot where they would place a wooden frame upon the water. On a sunny day, the open frame cast a shadow on the bottom. The fish, seeing this shadow, would believe they could not cross over the lines—in essence they felt trapped. The natives would then slowly paddle back to shore where they could reach down and grab the fish by hand.
People can feel trapped in certain situations. To some it may seem silly, but to others it’s overwhelming. People can become frightened and feel like no in the world understands—but God does.
Jesus said, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”
Jesus wasn’t talking about working 40+ hours a week. He was talking about people stuck on the treadmill of life—striving for perfection.
Jesus came to establish a relationship with people—not a religion.
Jesus walked into the Church of his day with a message of setting people free.
Luke 4:18 – Amplified Bible
The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon Me, because He has anointed Me [the Anointed One, the Messiah] to preach the good news (the Gospel) to the poor; He has sent Me to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed [who are downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity].
Every person who has ever answered the call to have a relationship with Jesus has had their lives completely changed—for the better. Today, this message still rings true.
I’m here to assure you that God loves you and understands what you’re going through. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done or where you’ve been. Jesus desires to have a relationship with you—to help you. He’s knocking at the door of your heart right where you are.
If you don’t have a personal relationship with God, I invite you to ask Jesus into your heart—today. You’ll be glad you did!
by Charles Hamilton
Harry Houdini, a famous escape artist, issued a personal challenge where ever he went. He claimed he could be locked in any jail in the country and still be able to set himself free. Houdini always kept his promise. Well, almost.
On one particular occasion, Houdini entered a jail cell as heavy metal doors shut behind him. He took from his belt a concealed piece of metal—strong and flexible. He began to work immediately, but something seemed to be unusual about this lock. For over thirty minutes he worked and got absolutely nowhere. An hour passed, and still he had not opened the cell door. By now he was bathed in sweat—panting in exasperation—yet he could not pick the lock. Finally, after two hours, Harry Houdini collapsed in frustration and failure against the cell door he could not lock. But when he fell against the door, it swung open. The jailers had tricked Houdini—it had never been locked at all. But in his mind it was locked. That was all it took to keep Houdini from opening the door and walking out of that jail.
Renewing your mind simply means thinking differently.
Much like a prisoner who has been institutionalized, we may still have old mindsets or old habit patterns that we’ve grown accustomed to that are keeping us in bondage.
However, God declares WE ARE SET FREE!
Proverbs says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” Our mindsets, like sails on a sailboat, will determine our success or failure. If we THINK we cannot live righteously, we won’t even try. If we think sin has the better of us, we will throw in the towel, and give up.
Jesus Christ is TRUTH—Satan is lie!
God has promised us the victory. He has promised us strength to overcome. Unless we trust in His promises, and claim the victory that He has promised through His Word, we will continue to be in bondage to what many call, “Stink’n Think’n.”
More than three thousand years ago twelve men left their families behind for an “expedition” to a land flowing with milk and honey; a land of abundance promised by God to a nation that had experienced three centuries of bondage and deprivation.
All twelve men saw the same things, traveled the same path, and had the same opportunities. Ten of those men were convinced that the giants were an obstacle to taking possession of the land; two of those men, Joshua and Caleb, saw God rather than the giants and concluded that a great opportunity lay before them. The difference between what the ten believed and what the other two believed was a difference in perspective—the rest is history.
The question to each of us is this: Whose report will we believe?
Isaiah 53:1 (New King James Version)
Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
Remember, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” ~Proverbs 23:7
This guest post comes to us from Graham Cooke at Graham Cooke Ministries.
Graham Cooke
God wants prophetic voices which have experienced the things they are speaking. God never drops a word into a life and leaves it at that. Instead, He nurtures the word, putting the Holy Spirit into action to bring unction and experiences. He explains His word time and again.
This is why every Christian needs to journal. I keep several journals that I write in all the time. All of my talks and books start their life in my journal. I set aside time to meditate, to think deeply and be absorbed by thought. I write and think about what God is saying to me. I mine everything I can out of the revelation God gives me. I dig through the word, looking for every ounce of truth.
God loves that type of intentionality. He will keep explaining His word and breathing it over us because He is committed to grounding something in our spirit.
Supporting a prophetic word means giving it more than once. We have to keep speaking it until the Holy Spirit tells us to stop. Our mission as prophets is to find creative ways to give the word, so it is not boring or monotonous. To accomplish this, we need to be passionate and wise about the word. How can we deliver something we do not understand? We have to let God energize us and reveal the depth of His wisdom to us.
I have given the same word as many as a dozen times. The key is to not become exasperated by the word, but be empowered by it. People who have attended more than one of my conferences or schools notice that I say the same thing several times. This isn’t because I’m short of material, it’s because I’m trying to nurture listeners into a new way of thinking about God and about themselves. I know that if someone starts to see themselves as God sees them, nothing on earth can stop them.
The prophetic steers, influences, and inspires people to stand up because they realize how great they are in Christ. When we know the magnitude of what God has for us as an individual, we cannot help but stand tall for Him. Our personality and attitudes are redefined by this revelation. Our outlook and perspectives shift. In short, we mature.
We must mentor and monitor one another until a full change of heart takes place. God will not let any of us go until His word is fulfilled—until we get it, we speak it, we hear it, we see it, we eat it, we drink it, we stand in it, we walk in it, we run with it, we fight with it, we live with it.
In Exodus, Moses had to see what God wanted him to be. His self-esteem was so low that all he could offer God at the burning bush was excuses. “I can’t,” Moses said. “You will,” answered God. Finally, God laid out very plainly His plan for Moses: “See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet,” (Exodus 7:1).
By the time God was finished with transforming Moses, the most powerful king on earth could only describe him as a god. That’s the only word he could find in the terminology of his twisted belief system. Imagine how secure God must be in Himself to let an earthly king think of Moses as a god? The Lord elevated Moses to a place of power so profound that it influenced the entire Middle East. All Moses had to do was believe.
We must hear the word and then see it. What we see and hear, we must speak out. Each of us needs to confess who God has made us to be. All along the way, God will nurture us, one step at a time.
by Charles Hamilton
Faith is the vehicle of your personal destiny.
This statement is a word I received in a dream. I believe every person has a personal destiny from the Lord (Jer. 29:11) and every person hopes to see it fulfilled.
In Hebrews Chapter eleven, verse one it says:
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
When we compare these two statements it gives greater insight of what faith is regarding our personal destiny—in Christ.
•Faith is the vehicle of your personal destiny.
•Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Faith is the vehicle we drive on the road to our destiny. A vehicle has substance. You can travel in a vehicle to any place you want to go.
Deep in the heart of every person is the hope that they can begin to fulfill their personal destiny. Therefore, to fulfill our destiny we must have faith.
We can believe that the grass is green and the sky is blue, however these things cannot help us to fulfill our personal destiny. No, it’s believing in the Bible—The Word of God—that will help us to fulfill our destiny.
In the book of Romans it says:
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
It is hearing and believing the Word of God—the promises of God—that will help us with our destiny.
There are over nine hundred promises in the Word of God. How many of them do you know? If you’re having a faith issue, it’s simply because you have not believed in the promises of God for your life.
Pray—ask the Holy Spirit to show you which scriptures you should be reading.
Ask Him which verses will help you to increase your faith.
The Holy Spirit is a person and has been personally given to help you fulfill your destiny. It is the combination of a personal relationship with God and the written Word of God that will help you in fulfilling your destiny.
Christ is the only one who can help you fulfill your personal destiny in God.
If faith is the vehicle—intimacy is the bridge.
Your intimacy with Christ is the bridge between your destiny and its fulfillment. If you do not have a personal relationship with God, I invite you to ask Jesus into your heart—today. Perhaps you had a relationship with the LORD during an earlier time of your life however, now you can no longer sense the presence of God in your life?
I am here to assure you that God still loves you and He desires to have an intimate relationship with you. He is standing at the door of your heart with open arms. You really can have a fresh start with Jesus Christ. Why not ask Him to come into your heart—today?
Charles Hamilton is the founder of cWorshipMusic.com, dedicated to providing worship music and biblical teachings. He is co-author of Gospel 101 and has released four music CD’s: Walk As Children Of Light (1991), The Jesus Project – Worship (2001), Songs Of The Bride – Higher Deeper (2003), and Transparent (2007). Charles and his wife, Suzanne, live in Salem, Virginia, and have six children.
“Faith is the vehicle of your personal destiny”
