(ANOTHER PART TO THE "HOLY GHOST SERIES" FROM David Wilkerson)
The command to walk in the Spirit is given to all—not just a few super-saints! Here is how you can obtain this walk: “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit…” (Galatians 5:16).
1. You must go after this walk with everything in you! First, ask the Holy Spirit to be your guide and friend.
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Luke 11:9).
If you are saved, the Holy Spirit has already been given to you. Now ask him to take over—surrender to him! You have to determine in your heart that you want him to lead and guide you. Moses, speaking of the latter days, said, “But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul” (Deuteronomy 4:29).
2. Focus on knowing and hearing the Spirit—and get your eyes off your trouble and temptation. Paul, Silas and Timothy would have wallowed in fear and depression if they had focused on their troubles. Instead, they focused on God—praising and worshiping him.
Most of the time when we go to prayer, we focus on past failures. We replay our defeats time after time, saying, “Oh, how far up the road I could be if I hadn’t failed God and messed up in my past.”
Forget everything in your past! It’s all under the blood! And forget about the future, too, because only the Lord knows what’s ahead. Instead, focus only on the Holy Spirit, with your whole mind and heart.
3. Give much quality time to communion with the Holy Spirit. He will not speak to anyone who is in a hurry. Wait patiently. Seek the Lord and minister praises to him. Take authority over every other voice that whispers thoughts to you. Believe that the Spirit is greater than these, and that he will not let you be deceived or blinded.
“Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
Monday, August 9, 2010
Thursday, August 5, 2010
LET GO OF YOUR PRIDE AND BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY GHOST!
In both the Old and New Testaments, the Holy Ghost fell upon people in the most
unusual ways! He shook buildings. People's tongues began to praise him—in new
tongues. The Holy Ghost took full control!
At Pentecost he came with a mighty, rushing wind! Fire fell! When the Holy
Ghost comes down, things get shaken up (see Acts 2:4 and 4:11).
John the Baptist preached, "I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier
than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire" (Luke 3:16).
Beloved, the Bible makes it very clear: When Jesus comes to you, he desires to
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire! The Holy Ghost brings fire—a red
hot, consuming love for Jesus. Why are so many believers hot one minute and
then cold the next, never totally yielded, never sold out? Is it because they
refuse to let Jesus baptize them with the Holy Ghost?
"When [the Holy Ghost] is come, he will reprove…of sin" (John 16:8). Could it
be that these believers are not convicted because the Holy Ghost has not yet
been invited to take his rightful place in them? He is God's plumb line.
Anything that does not measure up to Christ, he reveals—and he convicts us
and empowers us to conform to his Word! Truly he becomes our Comforter in this,
because as he convicts us of sin, he empowers us to forsake it. That is true
comfort!
The Holy Ghost will never make you do anything stupid. But he may come upon you
in such a way that sinners may think you are drunk! He is not welcome in many
churches because he is thought to be too noisy, too upsetting, too
unpredictable!
unusual ways! He shook buildings. People's tongues began to praise him—in new
tongues. The Holy Ghost took full control!
At Pentecost he came with a mighty, rushing wind! Fire fell! When the Holy
Ghost comes down, things get shaken up (see Acts 2:4 and 4:11).
John the Baptist preached, "I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier
than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire" (Luke 3:16).
Beloved, the Bible makes it very clear: When Jesus comes to you, he desires to
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire! The Holy Ghost brings fire—a red
hot, consuming love for Jesus. Why are so many believers hot one minute and
then cold the next, never totally yielded, never sold out? Is it because they
refuse to let Jesus baptize them with the Holy Ghost?
"When [the Holy Ghost] is come, he will reprove…of sin" (John 16:8). Could it
be that these believers are not convicted because the Holy Ghost has not yet
been invited to take his rightful place in them? He is God's plumb line.
Anything that does not measure up to Christ, he reveals—and he convicts us
and empowers us to conform to his Word! Truly he becomes our Comforter in this,
because as he convicts us of sin, he empowers us to forsake it. That is true
comfort!
The Holy Ghost will never make you do anything stupid. But he may come upon you
in such a way that sinners may think you are drunk! He is not welcome in many
churches because he is thought to be too noisy, too upsetting, too
unpredictable!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
THE HOLY SPIRIT KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING!
The Holy Spirit does not perform his work in us in some disjointed, haphazard
way. He doesn't exist to simply help us cope with life, to get us through
crises and to see us through lonely nights. He isn't there just to pick us up
and pump in a little more strength before putting us back into the race.
Everything the Holy Ghost does is related to his reason for coming—to bring
us home as a prepared bride. He acts only in keeping with that mission! Yes, he
is our Guide, our Comforter, our Strength in time of need. But he uses every act
of deliverance—every manifestation of himself in us—to make us more suitable
as a bride.
Neither is the Holy Ghost here to just give gifts to the world. No, his every
gift has a purpose behind it. The Holy Spirit has only one message: everything
he teaches leads to one, central truth. He may shine in us like a
many-splendored jewel, but every ray of truth is meant to bring us to a single
truth, and it is this:
"You are not your own—you have been bought with a price. You have been chosen
to be espoused to Christ. And the Spirit of God has been sent to reveal to you
the truth that will set you free from all other loves. Truth will break every
bondage to sin and deal with all unbelief. For you are not of this world; you
are headed for a glorious meeting with your espoused and are being readied for
his marriage supper. All things are now ready and I am preparing you! I want to
present you spotless, with a passionate love in your heart for him."
That's the work of the Holy Spirit—to manifest Jesus to the church, so that
we will fall in love with him. And that love will keep us!
By David Wilkerson
way. He doesn't exist to simply help us cope with life, to get us through
crises and to see us through lonely nights. He isn't there just to pick us up
and pump in a little more strength before putting us back into the race.
Everything the Holy Ghost does is related to his reason for coming—to bring
us home as a prepared bride. He acts only in keeping with that mission! Yes, he
is our Guide, our Comforter, our Strength in time of need. But he uses every act
of deliverance—every manifestation of himself in us—to make us more suitable
as a bride.
Neither is the Holy Ghost here to just give gifts to the world. No, his every
gift has a purpose behind it. The Holy Spirit has only one message: everything
he teaches leads to one, central truth. He may shine in us like a
many-splendored jewel, but every ray of truth is meant to bring us to a single
truth, and it is this:
"You are not your own—you have been bought with a price. You have been chosen
to be espoused to Christ. And the Spirit of God has been sent to reveal to you
the truth that will set you free from all other loves. Truth will break every
bondage to sin and deal with all unbelief. For you are not of this world; you
are headed for a glorious meeting with your espoused and are being readied for
his marriage supper. All things are now ready and I am preparing you! I want to
present you spotless, with a passionate love in your heart for him."
That's the work of the Holy Spirit—to manifest Jesus to the church, so that
we will fall in love with him. And that love will keep us!
By David Wilkerson
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
THE HOLY GHOST IS RECEIVED BY FAITH!
"This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the
law, or by the hearing of faith?" (Galatians 3:2). Saints, this message should
ignite your faith, and by faith you should lay hold of God's great promises!
"Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of
the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he
shall receive any thing of the Lord" (James 1:6–7).
Have you asked God for this gift? Are you seeking the Holy Ghost? Are you
continually knocking? "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto
your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to
them that ask him?" (Luke 11:13).
Simply ask and you will receive! Seek your heavenly Father for the baptism of
the Holy Ghost and he will give it to you!
We face a mad devil on the loose in our world today. He is unleashing all the
power at his command, and legions of evil powers are digging in for the final
conflict with heaven. But Satan cannot stand up to a righteous, Holy
Ghost-filled child of God who walks in faith and obedience. Show me a truly
Holy Ghost-possessed believer and I'll show you one who puts the legions of
hell to chase.
God, send the Holy Ghost! Fall upon us! Baptize us mightily. And send us forth
against satanic strongholds with an uncompromising faith that he will prevail
in our day!
The apostle Paul said, "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust
of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16). He also said, "If we live in the Spirit, let us
also walk in the Spirit" (5:25).
As Christians, we have heard this phrase throughout our lives: "Walk in the
Spirit." Many believers tell me they walk in the Spirit—yet they cannot tell
me what that truly means. Now, let me ask you: Do you walk and live in the
Spirit? And what does that mean to you?
I believe "walking in the Spirit" can be defined in one sentence: Walking in
the Spirit is simply allowing the Holy Spirit to do in us what God sent him to
do.
I believe you cannot allow him to do that work until you understand why God
sent the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Ghost has been sent down to us from the Father to accomplish one (and
only one) eternal purpose. And unless we understand his mission and work in us,
we will make one of two mistakes: One, we will settle for a small portion of his
work—such as a few of the spiritual gifts—mistakenly thinking this is all of
him and missing the grand work of his eternal purpose in our lives. Or, two, we
will quench the Spirit within us and ignore him completely, believing he's
mysterious and that his presence is something we must take by faith and never
understand.
The Holy Spirit has come to dwell in you and me to seal, sanctify, empower and
prepare us—he has been sent into our world to prepare a bride for marriage to
Christ!
An Old Testament type of this relationship between believers and the Holy
Spirit is found in Genesis 24. Abraham sent his eldest servant Eliezer to find
a bride for his son Isaac. Eliezer's name means "mighty, divine helper"—a
type of the Holy Spirit. And just as surely as this mighty helper came back
with Rebekah to present her as a bride to Isaac, likewise the Holy Spirit will
not fail to bring back a bride for our Lord Jesus Christ.
God chose Rebekah as a bride for Isaac—and the Lord led Eliezer right to her.
The servant's entire mission and purpose was focused on one thing: to bring
Rebekah to Isaac—to get her to leave all she had, and to be enamored of Isaac
and espoused to him. Rebekah's parents said to Eliezer, "The thing proceedeth
from the Lord…take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife"
(Genesis 24:50–51).
And, so it is with you and me! God chose us to be his bride. Our
salvation—our being chosen for Christ—was done by the Lord. He sent the
Holy Spirit to lead us to Jesus—and if we trust him, the Spirit will bring us
safely home as Christ's eternal bride!
By David Wilkerson
law, or by the hearing of faith?" (Galatians 3:2). Saints, this message should
ignite your faith, and by faith you should lay hold of God's great promises!
"Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of
the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he
shall receive any thing of the Lord" (James 1:6–7).
Have you asked God for this gift? Are you seeking the Holy Ghost? Are you
continually knocking? "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto
your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to
them that ask him?" (Luke 11:13).
Simply ask and you will receive! Seek your heavenly Father for the baptism of
the Holy Ghost and he will give it to you!
We face a mad devil on the loose in our world today. He is unleashing all the
power at his command, and legions of evil powers are digging in for the final
conflict with heaven. But Satan cannot stand up to a righteous, Holy
Ghost-filled child of God who walks in faith and obedience. Show me a truly
Holy Ghost-possessed believer and I'll show you one who puts the legions of
hell to chase.
God, send the Holy Ghost! Fall upon us! Baptize us mightily. And send us forth
against satanic strongholds with an uncompromising faith that he will prevail
in our day!
The apostle Paul said, "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust
of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16). He also said, "If we live in the Spirit, let us
also walk in the Spirit" (5:25).
As Christians, we have heard this phrase throughout our lives: "Walk in the
Spirit." Many believers tell me they walk in the Spirit—yet they cannot tell
me what that truly means. Now, let me ask you: Do you walk and live in the
Spirit? And what does that mean to you?
I believe "walking in the Spirit" can be defined in one sentence: Walking in
the Spirit is simply allowing the Holy Spirit to do in us what God sent him to
do.
I believe you cannot allow him to do that work until you understand why God
sent the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Ghost has been sent down to us from the Father to accomplish one (and
only one) eternal purpose. And unless we understand his mission and work in us,
we will make one of two mistakes: One, we will settle for a small portion of his
work—such as a few of the spiritual gifts—mistakenly thinking this is all of
him and missing the grand work of his eternal purpose in our lives. Or, two, we
will quench the Spirit within us and ignore him completely, believing he's
mysterious and that his presence is something we must take by faith and never
understand.
The Holy Spirit has come to dwell in you and me to seal, sanctify, empower and
prepare us—he has been sent into our world to prepare a bride for marriage to
Christ!
An Old Testament type of this relationship between believers and the Holy
Spirit is found in Genesis 24. Abraham sent his eldest servant Eliezer to find
a bride for his son Isaac. Eliezer's name means "mighty, divine helper"—a
type of the Holy Spirit. And just as surely as this mighty helper came back
with Rebekah to present her as a bride to Isaac, likewise the Holy Spirit will
not fail to bring back a bride for our Lord Jesus Christ.
God chose Rebekah as a bride for Isaac—and the Lord led Eliezer right to her.
The servant's entire mission and purpose was focused on one thing: to bring
Rebekah to Isaac—to get her to leave all she had, and to be enamored of Isaac
and espoused to him. Rebekah's parents said to Eliezer, "The thing proceedeth
from the Lord…take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife"
(Genesis 24:50–51).
And, so it is with you and me! God chose us to be his bride. Our
salvation—our being chosen for Christ—was done by the Lord. He sent the
Holy Spirit to lead us to Jesus—and if we trust him, the Spirit will bring us
safely home as Christ's eternal bride!
By David Wilkerson
Saturday, July 31, 2010
A LITTLE TASTE OF HEAVEN
(NOTE FROM THE WATCHMEN: This goes with the previous devotional we have released. Please understand we are not presenting a denominational issue here, but a person you need and must meet with. He is a gift from God to you to endue you with POWER and Christlikeness. You will need him in these end times.)
A foretaste is an advance taste or realization. The Bible calls it an
earnest—"the earnest of our inheritance" (Ephesians 1:14). It means to bring
a taste of the whole before we have the whole. Our inheritance is Christ
himself—and the Holy Spirit brings us into his very presence as a foretaste
of being received as his bride, enjoying everlasting love and communion with
him.
Paul describes a people of God who are "sealed with that Holy Spirit"
(Ephesians 1:13). This speaks of a people specially marked by a work of the
Spirit. The Holy Spirit has produced in them a distinguishing mark, a glorious
inner work—something supernatural that has changed them forever.
They are not ordinary believers anymore. They are no longer "of this world,"
since they have set their affections on things above, not on the things of this
earth. They are not moved by the world's events; rather, they are unshakable.
They are no longer lukewarm or halfhearted. Instead, their hearts cry out night
and day, "Come quickly, Lord Jesus…."
What happened to them? What did the Holy Spirit do in these believers? What
marked and sealed them forever as the Lord's possession? Simply this: The Holy
Ghost gave them a foretaste of the glory of his presence! He came to them,
rolled back heaven—and they experienced a supernatural manifestation of his
exceeding greatness! He gives us "a little heaven" to go to heaven with—a
whetting of our appetite.
What kind of bride do you think the Spirit will present to Jesus Christ on that
day of revelation? One who is halfhearted? Whose love is lukewarm, or cold? Who
is not devoted to Jesus? Who does not want intimacy with Christ?
If you truly love Jesus, he's never out of your mind. He is present in your
every waking moment. Some Christians think, "That will happen after I die. When
I get to heaven, everything will change. I'll become the special bride of the
Lord then." No, dying doesn't sanctify anybody! This Holy Ghost is here today.
He is alive and working in you—to produce in you a passionate love for Christ
on this side of death!
Romans 8:26 describes one of the most powerful works of the Holy Spirit in the
heart of the believer. "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."
The Greek word used for groaning means "a yearning"—a longing for more of
Christ. You can yearn after Jesus so much that you sit in his presence and
nothing comes out but a deep groaning—something that cannot be uttered. It
says, "Jesus, you're the only happiness there is in this world. I have tasted
and seen that you're good—and I want all of you."
This is the mark of one who is walking in the Spirit. He has an insatiable
appetite for Jesus. Like Paul, he is just anxious to depart and be with the
Lord!
By David Wilkerson
A foretaste is an advance taste or realization. The Bible calls it an
earnest—"the earnest of our inheritance" (Ephesians 1:14). It means to bring
a taste of the whole before we have the whole. Our inheritance is Christ
himself—and the Holy Spirit brings us into his very presence as a foretaste
of being received as his bride, enjoying everlasting love and communion with
him.
Paul describes a people of God who are "sealed with that Holy Spirit"
(Ephesians 1:13). This speaks of a people specially marked by a work of the
Spirit. The Holy Spirit has produced in them a distinguishing mark, a glorious
inner work—something supernatural that has changed them forever.
They are not ordinary believers anymore. They are no longer "of this world,"
since they have set their affections on things above, not on the things of this
earth. They are not moved by the world's events; rather, they are unshakable.
They are no longer lukewarm or halfhearted. Instead, their hearts cry out night
and day, "Come quickly, Lord Jesus…."
What happened to them? What did the Holy Spirit do in these believers? What
marked and sealed them forever as the Lord's possession? Simply this: The Holy
Ghost gave them a foretaste of the glory of his presence! He came to them,
rolled back heaven—and they experienced a supernatural manifestation of his
exceeding greatness! He gives us "a little heaven" to go to heaven with—a
whetting of our appetite.
What kind of bride do you think the Spirit will present to Jesus Christ on that
day of revelation? One who is halfhearted? Whose love is lukewarm, or cold? Who
is not devoted to Jesus? Who does not want intimacy with Christ?
If you truly love Jesus, he's never out of your mind. He is present in your
every waking moment. Some Christians think, "That will happen after I die. When
I get to heaven, everything will change. I'll become the special bride of the
Lord then." No, dying doesn't sanctify anybody! This Holy Ghost is here today.
He is alive and working in you—to produce in you a passionate love for Christ
on this side of death!
Romans 8:26 describes one of the most powerful works of the Holy Spirit in the
heart of the believer. "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."
The Greek word used for groaning means "a yearning"—a longing for more of
Christ. You can yearn after Jesus so much that you sit in his presence and
nothing comes out but a deep groaning—something that cannot be uttered. It
says, "Jesus, you're the only happiness there is in this world. I have tasted
and seen that you're good—and I want all of you."
This is the mark of one who is walking in the Spirit. He has an insatiable
appetite for Jesus. Like Paul, he is just anxious to depart and be with the
Lord!
By David Wilkerson
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