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Our Final Exam – What’s On It?

ClassI’m posting about God’s ongoing work of salvation in us. God desires to continually bring about changes in us.

But what happens if I don’t allow God to continue with His plan to renew my life? Paul gives us some insight into the question. In the letter to the Corinthian church, Paul is addressing a group of mostly baby Christians. According to the Apostle, they’re not babies because they lack experience, but because they chose not to grow up.

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15

When we are initially saved we’re placed onto the foundation of Christ. It’s afterwards that the building program begins. We have the choice to build for ourselves – wood, hay, and straw. Think about it in the natural. All over the world wood, hay, and straw are normal building materials. They’re used because they’re readily available and easy to build with.

It’s a lot more difficult to build with gold, silver or costly stones. They speak of what’s built by the spirit. If we submit to the will of God for our lives, then we’ll see a beautiful structure arise. Not only that, but it will be beyond our expectations for what we could have ever accomplished on our own.

The good news is that we’re told how it will all turn out. We’re not in the dark. We know what we’ll be judged on. The test is fire.

You can build some elaborate and beautiful houses with wood, hay and straw. I’ve seen some grandiose mansions around the country. Here’s the problem, they’re not going to be judged on how high they were built or how ornate they are. They’re going to be doused with gasoline and lit up.

Think about what’s important to you right now. The test is not how high you climbed up the corporate ladder. It’s not how much money you accumulated. It’s not even about how many good deeds you did or how many friends you have on Facebook.

The judgment will be based upon how close you stuck to the Plan. Did you allow the Holy Spirit to work His changes in your life? The final exam is how close your life came to God’s will for you.

That’s what will matter the most to you in the end.

Question: How high on you priority list is knowing and accomplishing God’s will for your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on April 21, 2014 in Faith, Ministry, The Gospel

 

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Is Your Faith Pleasing to God?

 

DoveDo you make an effort to please God? Do you know what that means? I’m not talking about God loving you – He loves everyone. I’m not even talking about God accepting you. We’re made righteous and acceptable to God in Christ.

Pleasing is on a different level. It means that God actually enjoys what you’re doing. The Bible talks about it.

When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:21-22

Just like Christ, we must be driven to set our hearts on what is well pleasing to God. Only then will He release His power in us to secure our anointing. It should be important to us to find out what well pleases the Lord.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6

This is the starting line. Pleasing the Lord requires faith. That should come as no surprise. But let’s seek the understanding of what this means.

Many say, “I’m a faith person.” Is that enough?

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
1 Peter 1:6-7

Talk is cheap. In more than one place, the Scripture tells us that your faith must be tried and approved. Even Christ told us that when the Word sown in you, trials would come.

So I’m not talking about a generic, surface faith. We need a faith that has stood the test, and is found to be approved by God. That’s why in the verse from Hebrews, above, it’s not just about believing He exists.

We must also have faith in the knowledge that He rewards those who seek Him.

“I will diligently seek Him…tomorrow.”

If I’m going to please God, then I need to be diligent and press in immediately. It’s not something that I keep putting off for a more convenient time. In all likelihood, there will never be an easy time to press in to God’s will.

If I want an approved faith, then I need to just “go for it.” The time is now. Diligently seek a tested and approved faith that goes beyond just being acceptable to the Lord. Go for the “well pleasing” kind of faith.

Questions: How has your faith been tested recently? Did it stand the test?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on April 7, 2014 in Anointing, Faith

 

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Meeting God in the Wilderness

BeamI don’t mind saying that with all the snow and cold that we’ve been getting in my part of the country, I’m ready for spring!  Then I can start one of my favorite pastimes again.  I’m talking about spending time in the woods hiking, praying, and meditating on the Word.

It’s always a lift to my spiritual life.  I believe that every Christian who’s physically able should try it.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.  After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
Matthew 4:1-2

Since I’ve started hiking I have a new respect for the Lord’s physical condition.  Being able to survive in the wilderness for forty days, living on only water is quite a physical challenge.

At one point I tried a two-day fast while hiking a section of the Appalachian Trail.  I remember barely making it. The hunger was intense.  I felt weak.  It got to the point where it hurt just to put one leg in front of the other.

I promised myself I would never do that again.  I can only imagine what Jesus felt like after 40 days.

There is a hunger, however, that I want to hike with.  That’s a hunger of the spirit.  If we can go into the wilderness with a hunger for the presence of the Lord, then we’ll come back from our journeys a changed person.

If we can see the outdoors as a meeting-place between God and us, we’ll take our wilderness activities to a whole new level.

The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:3-4

Once you decide to use the wilderness to achieve spiritual goals, it will transform your whole experience.  The outdoors will become a place where you must sometimes face your own personal demons.  In Jesus’ case it was from the outside.  In our case it’s usually from within.

The wilderness gives God a chance to confront us on His terms.  There’s nothing to fall back on; no distractions to hide our thoughts.  God can throw a light on all the issues we’ve been sweeping under the rug for so long.

What I’ve found is that there’s no place to hide.  I can’t “remember” that phone call I need to place.  There is no TV program that I have to watch right now.  God can have my undivided attention.

It’s an awesome thing to go into the wilderness to hear from God.

Be prepared.  It’s not always what we expect.  He’ll set the agenda, and there’s no way out.  Change will happen in our lives, if we give the Lord an opportunity.

Think about spending some time in a wilderness setting with the Lord.  I guarantee that it will be life-changing.

Questions: Have you ever spend time praying in the woods?  What did you take away from that time?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 5, 2014 in Prayer, Times in the Wilderness

 

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5 Ways to Keep Your Vision #vision

MountainDo you have vision – a God given goal that you desire to achieve for His glory?  If you do, then the worst thing that could happen is for you to lose sight of it.  Without a clear vision, you end up floundering around and accomplishing nothing of significance.

The Scripture gives us the tools we need to keep our vision clearly in focus.  Then as we keep our priorities in check, we will eventually arrive at our destiny in Christ.

Then the Lord replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.  For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false.  Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:2-3

This verse gives us five principles that will help keep our vision strong.

1. Write it down.

One of the biggest problems we face as human beings is our tendency to forget.  We hear a Word from God.  We make a commitment to walk in it.  A year later we don’t even remember it.

A spiritual journal is a great way to keep your walk with God on track.  You must record what you prayed about, what God spoke to your heart, and decisions you’ve made.  Then, take the time to review it periodically.

2. Make it plain.

Serving God doesn’t have to be complicated.  You need to see where you’re headed in clear, simple words.  Only then can you break it up into small manageable pieces.

It doesn’t matter how unreachable it seems to be right now.  I had a Pastor who would always ask us, “How do you eat an elephant?”  His answer was, “One bite at a time.”  A vision that’s written down in clear, plain terms will always be easier to achieve.

3. Run with it.

Of course, having a vision doesn’t really help if you never do anything about it.  There has to be some action taken.  Once you know where you’re headed, start moving forward.

Don’t let fear, intimidation, or a low self-image keep you from pursuing your dream.  It’s not about whether you can accomplish it or not.  It’s about what God can do through you.

4. Wait for it.

This is sometimes the hardest part.  Once you’ve done everything you know to do, it’s time to wait for the Lord to do His part.  Timing is everything.  We need to understand that there is a divine appointment with God.

He knows the times and the seasons we’re going through.  We want to blindly rush forward.  The Bible is clear that in order to obtain the prize, we must walk in patience.

5. Walk in faith.

After everything is said and done, it all comes down to faith.  Do you trust God for the outcome?  Remember that it’s not how things look on the surface that matters.  It’s what God has spoken that will ultimately prevail.

Continue to hide His Word in your heart and trust Him to bring it to completion.

These are the principles that will keep your vision clear and focused, no matter what challenges come your way.

Question: What’s the next step you’ll take to move toward your God-given assignment?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on March 3, 2014 in Faith, Ministry

 

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The Language of the Spirit #prayerinthespirit

JumbleI’ve been posting about Prayer in the Spirit.  The last point I mentioned is that when you pray in tongues, you are not hearing the actual prayer.  It is the spiritual communication with God that’s the important thing.

Remember that until Adam sinned he didn’t hear God with his ears.

For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful.
1 Corinthians 14:14

Paul goes on to say that not even your mind understands what is being communicated in the spirit with God.  This is an intimate conversation between your spirit and the Spirit of the Lord.  All of this is great, but what does it have to do with the power of God in my life?

Let’s get back to where we left off in that discussion.  When you’re saved, the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside of you.  You are now connected to God’s wireless network.  You have everything you need to access the power of God for your life.  However, there’s still something you need in order for the connection to function properly.

Look at it this way.  You may have a state of the art computer with a cutting edge wifi or 4G adapter, but there’s still something it needs.  That’s because the internal language of your computer in incompatible with the language of the internet.

In order for the computer to talk to the internet, it needs a piece of software called a browser.  It’s the browser that translates the internal language of your computer into the language of the internet allowing it to access everything that’s available.

It’s the same in the spirit.  In order for you to use God’s network you need a “download” from the Holy Spirit.  Your spirit needs to learn the language of the Holy Spirit.

You’ve spent you whole life never speaking to God on His level, in the spiritual realm.  The gift of the Holy Spirit is the language of the spirit.  As a matter of fact the word tongue is the old English word for language.

The gift of the Spirit is really the gift of language.  The baptism in the Holy Spirit is the download of the spiritual language you need to access the power of God’s network.  This is why I usually call it the gift of language or the heavenly language.  I want to take the emphasis off of the physical (the tongue) and place it on the spiritual where it belongs.

Think about it.  According to language experts, what’s the most effective way to learn a new language?  They call it the immersion method, where they literally immerse you in the language you are trying to learn.  What’s the Biblical term for immersion?  It’s the word baptism.

It’s amazing how perfectly God chooses the words that He uses to describe His gifts.  The Baptism of the Spirit is your immersion into the language of the Spirit.  Unlike a natural language which may take months and years to learn, God can do the supernatural work in an instant.

This gift, the Baptism in the Spirit, opens up a new walk of power in the Holy Spirit.

Question: How has the Baptism in the Spirit blessed your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 28, 2014 in Power of God, Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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God’s Wifi

WifiIn my last post I concluded with the truth that our spirits are now alive to God – the lines of communication are open in Christ.  This is why the preaching of the Word is so important.  The only way God can speak to an unbeliever is through the church.  God speaks to us, then, we bring His message to the world.  This in itself is a supreme privilege.

Since the Holy Spirit now lives in you, your spirit is reconnected to the Holy Spirit.  I want you to see incredible opportunity that God has opened up to us because of this gift.

Until this generation there was no easy way of illustrating the spiritual principles that are at work here.  Now, because of our modern technology, it makes it easier to picture the work God has done in us.  Let me explain.

Before you came to Christ, you were an old, broken-down, unusable, burned out computer.  Then, Christ saved you, cleaned you up, fixed you and put a brand new processor on the inside.  He also wired you up with a cutting edge wireless network adapter – His Holy Spirit in you.

Before this generation, we couldn’t conceive of being connected to something bigger than us, wherever we go.  Think about the internet.  The internet covers the earth.  You can wirelessly connect to it wherever you are, 24/7.  That’s what God has done in our spirits.  He’s hooked you into His wireless system – His network.

It’s through this network that we have access to the power of God.  It comes from the very throne of God, through the Holy Spirit, into our lives.  That’s what this series of posts is about.  I want to show you how to access and utilize the incredible power of this spiritual network.  It’s greater than any human invention.

On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.  For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Acts 1:4-5

There is probably no subject in all of Christianity that sparks more controversy than the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.   Even among the so called Pentecostal, Full Gospel, and Charismatic churches there are many divisions, inconsistencies, and misconceptions concerning this teaching.  So many terms are thrown around without the knowledge of what they mean in Scripture.

Terms such as the Gift of the Spirit, receive the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, Baptized in the Spirit, tongues, and prayer in the spirit.

It’s through the gift of the Holy Spirit that we have access to more power than we could ever even dream about.  There’s much more to it than just “speaking in tongues.”  It’s the greatest gift that we could ever receive, yet the most underused.  It’s my prayer and desire that the church enters into a fuller and deeper experience in this gift.

In my next post I will begin to explain this spiritual gift in more detail.

Questions: Have you been baptized in the Spirit?  How often do you use this gift?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 24, 2014 in Power of God, Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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Alive to God! #prayerinthespirit

Garden PathIn my last post I showed that God’s definition of death is an inability to communicate.  In the same way, Adam didn’t die according to our modern definition.  He died in God’s definition.

From that point on God could no longer fellowship with Adam and Eve on the level He desired.

God wanted an interaction in the spirit, but this was no longer possible because of sin.  Therefore, to God, Adam and Eve were dead.  God could no longer communicate to them on the level of the spirit.  He would now have to use other means.

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Genesis 3:8

Notice the wording that’s used here.  The man and the wife heard the sound of God.  This is the first place in Scripture where it specifically says that God made a sound.

This is emphasized because Adam and Eve had never before heard with their ears, God making a sound.  Before that, they always communicated by the spirit.  This new experience inspired fear.

He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
Genesis 3:10

We can hear it from Adam’s own mouth.  The two things that caused fear in him were hearing God, and seeing his nakedness.  At that point, as a race of people, mankind was cut off from spiritual communication with God.

Please understand, our spirits are still active.  This is how mediums, witch doctors, and spiritists can communicate with familiar spirits.  They can still interact in the spiritual realm, they just don’t understand the dangers of this practice.

As far as communication with God is concerned, mankind’s spirits can not talk to God because of sin.  After the fall, God could only communicate to man by very limited means. God could speak bodily, through angels, a donkey, a voice, or by taking on flesh.  He could speak inwardly, directly to our mind.  He could also “move upon” someone, which literally means that He “put them on like clothes” and spoke through them.

This was the sad condition of the human race until Christ came on the scene.  He really was “God with us”.  The Gospels record the work He did for us on the cross.  Because of His death, burial, and resurrection we can now enter into a salvation that we could never experience in our own strength.

Now, if we receive His great gift, the Holy Spirit takes up residence on the inside of us.  This means that communication lines are open once again between us and the Lord.  According to God’s definition, we are now alive to Him.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:11

But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
Romans 8:10

It’s clear from Scripture that your spirit is now alive to God!!!

Question: How important to you, is the knowledge that God’s Holy Spirit lives in you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 21, 2014 in Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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Worship – The Place of Power #trueworship

PowerWithout a doubt, the Bible teaches that God’s power flows to us through the Holy Spirit.  In my last post we looked at what Jesus said in John, chapter 7.

“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.  Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
John 7:38-39

The first thing the Lord told us was that you must believe as the Scripture declares.  We can’t just believe anything that we want.  It will not work with faith simply for faith’s sake.  Our faith must be firmly based in the Word of God.

In order to get into the flow of God’s power we must trust Him as the Scripture declares.  We must also couple this with the knowledge that power involves intimacy with the Lord.  We must remain, abide, live, dwell, and reside in Him.  If intimacy with God is the priority, then we must ask ourselves what’s the most intimate place, spiritually?

There’s a biblical word that’s used for the concept of spiritual intimacy with God.  The meaning has been all but lost to modern Christians.  I’m hoping that the church will once again make this their goal.  The word I’m speaking about is WORSHIP.

In the Old Testament the Hebrew word translated worship means to prostrate yourself or to lay down with God.  In the New Testament, the Greek word they used for worship literally means to lean forward as if to kiss.  Both of these concepts involve intimacy.  You would never want to lay down with someone or kiss someone unless the moment was just right.

As I said before, we have all but lost the concept of what true worship is all about today.  To most Christians, leadership included, the difference between praise and worship is that praise is the fast songs and worship is the slow songs.

Actually, if you study the Scripture, you’ll find that both the fast and slow songs are praise.  This is because anything that we do toward God with our flesh (sing, clap, dance, etc.) is praise.

According to the Word, worship is a function of our spirit.  That’s why throughout the Old and New Testaments, whenever the position of worship is described, the worshipper is always prostrate or leaning on something.

Praise is always my flesh giving glory to God.  It’s a team effort.  That’s why when we’re in a meeting, the bigger the crowd, the more incredible the praise.

Worship, on the other hand, is just me and God.  Think about the times in church during the praise time when suddenly a “holy hush” comes over the congregation.  This is when the Lord is calling us to be intimate with Him.  It’s usually the most uncomfortable time there is in church.  That is because we are so unused to true worship.

What we have to realize is that if power requires intimacy, then worship is the place of power.

Question: How comfortable are you with being quiet before the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 12, 2014 in Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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Accessing the Throne Room of God #trueworship

ThroneTrue power only flows into our life through the Holy Spirit.  I want to take a series of posts to look at the mechanics of just how the Holy Spirit works in us.  We will obviously need to look at many issues that affect our spiritual intimacy with the Lord.

Throughout our search we must always keep in mind that it’s the Spirit, not the law, which should be at work in us.

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3:18

It should be obvious that the Holy Spirit is involved in the flow of power to us.  This is the ability to produce change in our lives.  Specifically, it’s the power that changes us into the Lord’s likeness.

As we move from glory to glory the world should see this change and be drawn to the Savior.  This should be the number one reason why we want the power of God manifest in us.

The first question at this point is how do I plug into the power of the Holy Spirit?  We know that in the natural, power flows like a river.  It requires some sort of channel to move through.

This is why there are electrical wires.  Your car has a power train to transmit the power from the engine to the wheels.  There must always be something to transfer the power from one location to another.  It’s the same with the Spirit of God.

“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.  Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
John 7:38-39

Jesus likens the flow of the Holy Spirit to a river of living water.  At this point the disciples could not comprehend what the Lord was saying because the Holy Spirit had not yet been given to reside in men.

However, this does apply to us since we live on the other side of the cross.  Jesus tells us that out of our inner being the current of life will flow because of the Holy Spirit in us.  If power flows through a channel from one place to another, then what’s the source of this river?

The Apostle John got a glimpse of the headwaters.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
Revelation 22:1

What an incredible revelation of the Lord.  This means that through the Holy Spirit we have a direct connection between us and the very throne of God.  To neglect this awesome gift is beyond imagining.  We need to cultivate our intimacy with the Lord.

Question: Why do some believers place such a low value on the Holy Spirit within them?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 10, 2014 in Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit

 

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Choose Understanding

DimThe Bible talks a lot about understanding.  Unfortunately we live in a society that runs from it, because with understanding, comes responsibility.  Once I understand something, I’m responsible to walk in it.

The Jewish people were much the same as our world when it came to the ministry of Christ.  Because they rejected understanding, they lost out on a blessing.

For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.  Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.
Matthew 13:15

The fact is that understanding takes place in the heart.  The Greek word for understanding literally means to put together.  It’s in the heart that I begin to put together all the things that I’ve seen and experienced.

But that takes thought and meditation on your life.  Most people don’t want to do that.  They would rather just have a quick explanation about why things are the way they are.

“If I just had more money, I’d be happy.”

“If my parents had loved me more, my life would have turned out better.”

Understanding makes us responsible for our choices and responses.  That’s why it seems so hard to win the lost to Christ in our generation.

What happens if I try to plant the seed of the Gospel in a heart with no understanding?

When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is the seed sown along the path.
Matthew 13:19

Without understanding, Satan can snatch the seed right out of your heart.  The one receiving the Gospel must put it together with their whole life experience without Christ.  That’s why in this society, with the Word of God everywhere, many are rejecting the Gospel.

Our generation is taught to not understand.

“If it feels good, do it.”

Understanding protects the Gospel seed.  This should help us to minister in this society.  For instance, if someone says they’re an atheist, don’t just tell them what the Bible says.  They don’t want to understand it, so it will have no effect.

Instead, tell them, “I’m going to pray that God will make Himself real to you.  When He does, I’ll be there to talk to you about it.”  Then as you go through your day, continue in prayer for them.  This gives the Holy Spirit a chance to work on them.

As the Spirit of God starts to bring light into their experience, they’ll come to a point of decision.  Then it’s up to them whether they want to walk in their new found understanding.  That’s always the first step to God – choosing understanding.

Of course it doesn’t stop when we accept Christ as our Lord.  We must continue in it our whole lives.  It’s the basis for all we do in the Lord.

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
Ephesians 5:17

Question: How did understanding play a key role in your salvation experience?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on February 7, 2014 in Ministry, Prayer, Word of God

 

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