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The Sent One

BreadI’m taking some time to talk about the Holy Spirit and His work in us. In my last post I looked at the following verse.

“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
John 14:25-26

Notice that Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit was the one whom the Father will send in my name. It’s important to understand that the Spirit was sent to us from the Father.

At one point, just after He fed the 5000, Jesus was speaking to the crowd that was following Him.

Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
John 6:26-27

As He speaks, the Lord begins to tell them about spiritual food. He calls it food that remains to the point of eternal life. In other words, food that is eternally alive in you – always nourishing you. It doesn’t just leave your body after a day. That’s what we should be working for.

Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
John 6:28

They knew He was talking about spiritual food so they asked what kind of work was required.

Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
John 6:29

This is how you work for food that remains in you, bringing you eternal life. Believe in the one God has sent. Jesus could have said “believe in me”, “believe in my words,” or “believe in the Son of Man.” But He didn’t and there’s a good reason.

I’m a firm believer that Jesus meant what He said and said what He meant. Since He used a broader term – the one sent – it must be important.

At that point in history – Jesus was the revelation of God sent to Israel. But what about now…to us? Right now the sent one – the revelation of God sent to the world – is the Holy Spirit.

According to Christ, the work of God that feeds your soul is to believe the one that’s sent – the Holy Spirit. When He speaks I have to believe Him. That’s how I nourish my soul. That’s how I can receive spiritual food others have no concept of.

The Holy Spirit has been sent to us. We need a greater revelation of His work in us. In my next post, I’ll continue, taking this in more detail.

Question: What was the last thing you heard from the Holy Spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on July 13, 2015 in Faith, Spiritual Walk

 

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The Holy Spirit – Our Teacher

ClassIn my last post I started looking at some things about the Holy Spirit in us. I believe that we need to deepen our relationship with Him. There’s a purpose for this.

“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
John 14:25-26

This statement shows us two of the works that the Holy Spirit wants to perform in us. The first is that He will teach us all things. But His teaching is different than what we normally think of when using that word.

The root of this word teach is learn. This is different than just a lecture. Even though I attend a class, I may or may not learn anything.

What this verse implies is that the Holy Spirit will cause you to learn. There are lessons He wants to get across to you. The fact is, you will learn them – the easy way or the hard way. The Spirit will bring you the lesson in such a way as to make it impossible to ignore.

The second role of the Holy Spirit mentioned here is that of reminding you of the words of Christ. It literally says that He will quietly remind you, or suggest. I believe that this refers to whatever Christ is trying to get across to you at the time.

The Spirit doesn’t come in like a bull in a china shop. He doesn’t disrupt our lives and demand our attention. That’s probably why we miss His voice on occasion.

Our goal should be to recognize that voice when He speaks to us. Elijah learned this lesson.

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
1 Kings 19:11-13

The Holy Spirit is sent to come alongside us. He wants to teach us and to gently persuade us. That’s what makes it so hard to hear Him sometimes. He doesn’t barge into our lives – He waits for us to listen. That’s why it’s so important to cultivate our relationship with Him. Time spent in the Spirit is never wasted.

Give the Holy Spirit the time He needs to come alongside you, to teach, remind, and suggest what needs to be done in your life.

Question: What have you learned from your time spent with the Holy Spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on July 10, 2015 in Prayer, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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The Holy Spirit – God in Us

DoveI believe that the church doesn’t fully understand the blessing we’ve been given. We have the Spirit of the living God residing in us. We need a greater awareness of who He is and His ongoing work in our lives.

Throughout history, God revealed Himself in various forms. In Scripture He describes Himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Jesus taught His disciples about what to expect when He was taken from them.

“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”
John 14:15-17

They were told that the Spirit of Truth is another Counsellor just like Jesus. The word Counsellor means the One who calls alongside. I’ve said before that He’s like a coach that’s constantly by our side encouraging us.

According to Jesus, the world can’t watch or know Him. He told the disciples that they already know Him because He was presently living with them. The good news was that soon the Holy Spirit would be living in them.

If this is another Counsellor, then just how much like Jesus is He?

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”
John 14:18-20

Jesus promised the disciples that He would come to us and be in us. Wait a minute, I thought that was what the Holy Spirit would do. Please understand, Christ and the Spirit are one and the same person – they are both God, just different revelations of Him.

Hold on, there’s more.

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”
John 14:23

What a tremendous blessing we’ve been given. It’s not just a part of God we’ve been given, but along with the Holy Spirit we have the Father and the Son. God is one. He can’t be broken apart like pieces of a puzzle.

I know that for various reasons we have to teach about them separately from time to time. But the simple fact is that we have the full Godhead resident in us through the Holy Spirit. That’s why we need to deepen our relationship with Him.

The more we get to know the Holy Spirit, the more intimate we are with Christ and the Father.

Question: How would you characterize your relationship with the Holy Spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on July 8, 2015 in Revival, Spiritual Walk, Worship

 

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“No Pain, No Gain” (Repost)

JogThis is the fourth of six reposts of my most read articles. This was originally from a series in 2012. The series was about the uses of Scripture as listed in II Timothy 3:16.

To view the original series, click here.

This post is about training in righteousness.

This word training means to mentor or to train up like a child from infancy to adulthood. The Bible is written for all. It doesn’t matter where you are in your spiritual walk.

If you’re a baby Christian who was just saved, it can be your milk bottle. If you’re mature in the Lord, it has the meat of the deep truths of God. It can satisfy any hunger.

But what exactly does it train us in? Paul is very specific – training in righteousness.

In Scripture, you’ll find that righteousness is the whole package of what Christ paid for on the cross. Throughout the Word righteousness is associated with: Rewards, victory in battle, prosperity, salvation, honor, life, and healing. Scripture truly is the owner’s manual for our walk with the Lord.

When Paul speaks about training in righteousness he’s talking about the whole plan of God for your life. The job of Scripture is to take you from wherever the Lord found you when you were saved to the heights of His perfect plan for your life.

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
Hebrews 12:11

The word discipline in this verse is the same Greek word as training in Second Timothy. The writer of Hebrews tells us that there is pain associated with this kind of training. Why is that?

The answer is simple. This training is what causes us to grow from infancy to maturity. Growth means change, and change hurts. Think about it – when I was an infant I could throw my toys all over the floor and my parents would joyfully pick everything up.

Then, there came a day when I was told, “It’s time to pick up your toys and put them away.” There must have been a look of pain and distress on my face when I had to clean my room.

Then, there came a day when I couldn’t just do as I pleased all day long. My parents came to me and informed me that I would be starting school next week. Suddenly there was a place I had to be every day, to read, learn, and take tests whether I wanted to or not. It was painful to me.

As a matter of fact, almost every new responsibility throughout our lives causes some degree of discomfort. That’s what this Scripture is talking about. As we are brought to maturity there are going to be painful changes. Things we used to do, that we’re no longer able to do. Thing we’ve never done that we’re now responsible for. We must let the Scripture do its work, so that we can be mature and complete – not lacking anything that the Lord has provided for us.

Question: What did you find most painful, so far, in the maturing process?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Hiking and Praying

BackpackAs I said in my last post, I’m about to leave for two weeks of hiking and praying. I always find these times refreshing. I get to be alone with the Lord for hours praying and listening for His voice.

The Lord spent 40 days alone in the wilderness. This helped to prepare Him for ministry. I’m looking forward to what Holy Spirit will work in me during this time.

Actually this type of praying in the outdoors was a large part of Jesus’ ministry. Over and over again we read of the Lord having this “alone time” with the Father.

After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.
Matthew 14:23

I think that every believer should experience this blessing. No, you don’t have to go off into the woods for a week. You can find a quiet place near your home where you can spend even an hour or two outdoors with the Lord.

I can tell you this; it’s a totally different experience than praying in your house or office. Be prepared to hear from God in a way that you never have before.

As I’m preparing to leave, I feel the Lord impressing me to do something a bit different for the posts while I’m away. My hope is that it will be a blessing to you.

I realize that this blog is not very far reaching at this point. But there have been a few of my posts that seemed to touch a lot of people. So for the two weeks that I’m away, I’m going to repost the 6 most read posts of mine since I’ve started.

Many of those following this blog were not here for those early days. They’ll probably be new to most of those now following me. The Apostle Peter put it this way.

So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body…
2 Peter 1:12-13

It’s good to be reminded of the truths that we’ve heard in the past. Who knows, even if you read them the first time they were posted, you might get something new from them in your present walk with the Lord.

One more thing; please keep me in your prayers as I take this time to seek God. And please be patient with me if I take a while in responding to comments. Sometimes the cell phone reception is spotty on the trails.

Question: Do you have any interesting experiences you’ve had outdoors with the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Spiritual Sensitivity

TrailHow sensitive are you to the things of the spirit? Do you take the time to hear what the Holy Spirit is speaking to you? God’s people should be in tune to what the Lord is accomplishing on the earth.

This is how Paul described it.

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
1 Corinthians 2:14

I know that I’ve mentioned my hiking from time to time in this blog. As a matter of fact, in a few days I’m leaving on a two week long “hiking and prayer” trip. I’m looking forward to a good time in the Spirit.

I find it enjoyable talking to non-hikers about my backpacking trips. I love their reactions to some of my statements.

“How can you sleep all night in a shelter with only three sides?” “What do you eat?” “Where do you find a bathroom?”

I think that it shocks some people to learn that it’s possible to live without all the trappings of society. The thought of spending one night without TV or the internet is frightening. They don’t even want to think about the fact that running water isn’t necessary to survival.

Unless you’ve experienced the freedom of the wild, the ecstasy of a mountaintop, or the tranquility of a hidden lake there’s no understanding what I find.

It’s the same in the spirit. Unless you’ve experienced the wisdom, peace, and power of a relationship with the Holy Spirit, you have no clue how important it is. The thought of spending time in prayer is foolishness to those who ignore it.

That’s what Paul is talking about in the verse above. The phrase man without the spirit is actually the soulish man in the Greek. He’s not talking about an unsaved person. Rather, it’s the Christian who lives by what sounds logical to him. He gives no thought to the Spirit.

Unfortunately there are many believers who live this way. They read the Bible, go to church, and then do their best to figure out what they should be doing for the Lord. What they don’t realize is there are some things in their Christian walk that they can never figure out on their own.

They need to be hearing from the Holy Spirit. There are some things God has for us that can only be received by the spirit. But in order for that to happen there needs to be some quiet, alone time with the Holy Spirit.

There are some who can’t imagine spending time in the presence of God. But until you experience it for yourself, you’ll never fully understand the blessing. All of my descriptions fall short of the reality of time spent in the Spirit.

Walk in that blessed experience today. Spend time in the presence of the Lord. Let His Spirit minister to yours. Come away refreshed and revived. Let your soul be reminded why it’s so important to obtain what can only come from the Spirit.

Question: How has your life been touched and changed by time spent with the Holy Spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Directing Your Thoughts

 

cross 2I’ve been posting about how our minds are renewed by the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. This was also evident in the life of Christ.

Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
Luke 24:45

The word understand in this verse literally means to put together. The Lord opened up the minds of these disciples to put together all that was happening. This included the events surrounding the death and resurrection of Christ, as well as the Scripture that foretold it. They had to walk in a supernatural understanding in order to grasp what was happening.

We need this ability of the Holy Spirit in us to put together – understand and apply – all that’s in the Scripture. If I don’t cultivate my spiritual prayer life, then where will all of this understanding come from? We can receive these blessing nowhere else but from the spirit.

Paul understood this and tried to make it clear to his readers. In the following verse, the apostle is taking an Old Testament verse and revamping it for a spiritual people.

“For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:16

What this verse actually says in the Greek is, “Who has known the mind of the Lord well enough to be knit together with Him.” But we hold, possess the mind of Christ.

What an incredible truth! In the spirit we have access to the mind of the eternal God. The big question is; will we lay claim to this gift by the spirit?

It’s clear that the Holy Spirit is needed in order to renew our minds. But this renewal is more than just accessing God’s knowledge. It’s much deeper than that.

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus…
Philippians 2:5

This means that the direction of our minds should be the same as Christ. This is evident in our current church experience. So many of our prayers seem to go unanswered. We think we’re praying “in the will of God.” But we don’t see anything happening.

Many times we don’t receive when we pray because we’re headed in a different direction than Christ. We want the blessings of God. We just want them for a different reason than He does.

We need to direct our mind like Christ. When the Lord walked the earth, His mind was directed by the Spirit. That’s what renewal is all about. It’s not just changing what we think about, but how we think.

This is a difficult thing to do in the natural. Actually it’s pretty close to impossible. Trying to get the mind to renew itself is a losing proposition. Instead, the best way is to activate our spirit in order to keep our mind Christ-centered.

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Colossians 3:2

This would be quite a challenge for us to do in our own power. I know I can accomplish this temporarily. I wanted to see how long during the day I could make myself think about the things of God. I found it to be a lost cause. The littlest things would distract me and refocus my attention on the things of earth.

Prayer in the spirit, however, allows you to zero in on things above for an increasingly longer time. Your mind will begin to follow the lead of your spirit. You will begin to understand the things of the spirit like never before.

In this way your mind will start to become reset and refreshed. When this is taking place it goes a long way to changing how the outward man reacts to life. If we’re going to win the battle of the mind, then we must pray in the spirit regularly.

Question: How have you noticed your prayer life affecting your thought life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Daily Renewal

ButterflyIn my last post I began talking about the renewing of our minds. We saw from the Ephesians 4:23 that it’s a work that’s accomplished in the spirit.

…to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
Ephesians 4:23

Even the phrase be made new is full of meaning. It’s the Greek word ana-neoo. Neoo means brand, spanking new, right out of the box. Ana is a prefix that adds an intensive repetition. This renewal is to be done over and over again.

This is the only place in the Bible that this word is used. Every other place the word renew means to freshen or renovate. In this verse we’re talking about resetting everything back to the original factory settings. This is the ultimate do-over. But it can only be done in the spirit.

That’s why I place such a high emphasis on prayer in the spirit. Without it we have no chance of overcoming the sin nature, or walking in the renewed life. I feel that renewal of the mind is the most important part of the process. Without setting our mind correctly, it will never fully cooperate with God’s plan.

This is reiterated throughout Paul’s ministry. At one point he felt the need to remind Titus, a young pastor, about these things. He reminded Titus what they were like when they first came to God. They were just like everyone else in the world. They thought and acted like everyone around them.

…he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit…
Titus 3:5

The salvation process is described here in two parts. First, the washing of rebirth – the removal of the old man and the putting on of Christ. Then came the renewal by the Holy Spirit. We have to give up the idea that it’s just about reading the Bible.

As important as Scripture is to us, I know many people who aren’t even saved, who read the Bible every day. Their lives show no improvement because of this practice. The Bible will only bring change if it’s activated by the Holy Spirit.

That’s why this is not a one-shot deal. The word renewal contains the thought of repetition. We must continue in it day after day. Prayer in the spirit is not a holy “toy” that we take out of the box merely to play with on Sunday mornings. It’s a vital agent of change that needs to be cultivated day after day. We must continue to refresh and reset our minds.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
2 Corinthians 4:16

In the context of this verse, Paul is not talking about the entire church. We read this and think that every Christian is being renewed daily. That is absolutely not the case. In all of 2 Corinthians, chapter 4, Paul is talking about himself and his ministry team. Paul, who prayed in the spirit more than most believers of his day, was allowing himself to be renewed daily in the spirit.

This is why our daily time with the Lord is so important. We must take the time to read the Bible and pray in the spirit. Reading gets the written word into you. Prayer in the spirit activates that word and brings it to life within your heart.

That’s how you live in daily renewal, just like Paul. Not doing this is one of the biggest hindrances to serving Christ in His ability.

Question: How do you spend your daily with the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Death of the Old Self

 

GravesIn my last post I talked about the circumcision of the heart that puts off the old man. We saw from Scripture that this is accomplished through prayer in the spirit.

This is one of the reasons why prayer in the spirit is so important. It’s also the reason why so few believers win the battle over their flesh. They don’t realize that it can only be won in the spirit by the power of the Word of God released in us. That’s why Paul could say…

For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live…
Romans 8:13

This work is only accomplished in the spirit. The misdeeds of my body will never be put to death by any decision that I make – no matter how much I desire it. I can try and try in my own strength. The work is a spiritual breakthrough and only comes as I yield my spirit to the Holy Spirit.

The reality of this is apparent as I look back over recent history. I think about my grandparents’ generation. When I hear the testimonies of how they came to the Lord, I used to get frustrated. Their lives were totally turned around. Before Christ, their lives were characterized by drunkenness, gambling, and foul language.

When I came along, I only knew them as strong believers who told everyone they met about the power of Christ. They were humble examples of the life-changing work of God. Why did this frustrate me? Because I wanted my life to line up with the Word the way theirs did.

When I asked how I could become more like Christ, I was told that I needed to be more committed.

“When those old saints of God were saved, they really submitted themselves to God’s law.”

But it seemed that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t live like them. I was angry that God would change them so radically, while I was left trying on my own to overcome the flesh.

Now that I understand the work of the spirit, I can see what really happened in my grandparents’ lives. It was a spiritual work that changed them. Remembering back to what I saw in them, I now realize what made the difference. The main characteristic of their lives was prayer in the spirit.

They went to church meetings three days a week just to pray in the spirit. I remember hearing my grandmother (I lived with her) get up at 5 in the morning and begin praying in the spirit for hours. This was her daily routine.

I remember hearing people laughing at their commitment to this practice.

“That old Italian prayer meeting went on until midnight yesterday.”

Little did we know that it was the secret to the walk in the spirit that we could never attain to on our own.

I also see the same thing happening today. At one point our church began having a weekly meeting for the sole purpose of prayer in the spirit. This went on for about a year. During that year I remember commenting that those who came out and participated in the prayer were being radically changed.

At that time I didn’t know that they were putting off the old nature through prayer in the spirit. All I understood was that they were undergoing a rapid change in their spiritual walk.

The church needs to once again learn this truth. We need to submit to the Holy Spirit to perform the change in our hearts. Only then will the world see the difference that will draw them to the cross of Christ. Only then will we experience the revival that we so desperately hunger for.

Question: How committed are you to prayer in the spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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Spiritual Surgery

 

surgeryI’ve been posting about how we deal with our old sin nature. In my last post I said that water baptism was the first step in this process. Through it we identified with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

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

Here Paul tells us that in the same way we trusted Christ in baptism, we must count or literally inventory ourselves dead, indeed, to sin.

This goes right along with our baptism. In verse 3 of Romans chapter 6 we were baptized into His death. Now in verse 11, there’s something that Paul is hoping you’ll move into by faith. Paul describes this step to the Colossian church.

In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
Colossians 2:11-12

This is what we want to concentrate on – the putting off of the sinful nature. According to Paul, this is a surgical procedure that can only be done by Christ.

It isn’t a work I can perform. It doesn’t matter how much will-power I put forth. Only Christ, Himself, can bring it to pass in my life. I must submit under the blade of the divine Surgeon.

There are two prerequisites to this surgery. The first is baptism and the second is faith in the power of God. This means that I can’t look to myself and how well I can obey God. It’s all about how much I trust His power working in my life. How much am I willing to surrender to Him?

It’s the same as in the natural world. If I don’t trust the surgeon in a medical procedure, then I will not allow them to put me under the anesthesia.   I’ll only let someone I trust have that much power over my body. Do we trust Christ enough to consent to His life changing work in us?

No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God.
Romans 2:29

There’s another key point to this work of Christ in us. It can only be done in the spirit. It’s not something that I can physically accomplish. Neither is it a choice that I make in my mind.

The change is required in my heart. The old self has to be removed. How can my sin nature remove itself? It would never willingly choose to do that.

To get the old sin nature out of our heart requires outside assistance. That’s why it’s a work that only Christ can do, and it must be a spiritual work.

It’s for this reason that an understanding of the Word of God as a sword is so important.

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12

The sword of the spirit is the scalpel that performs the work in our heart. In the past I’ve emphasized that the things of the spirit can only be received through prayer in the spirit. This is the work that needs to be done in us. It’s a work that must be done in the spirit. Only prayer in the spirit will accomplish the change that’s necessary in our hearts.

In order for God to do this work in us, we must yield ourselves to Him. As in any surgery, we must willingly go under the knife if our healing is to take place. This is true for our spiritual surgery as well.

Question: How has Prayer in the Spirit changed your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 

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