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Tag Archives: power of God

Our All-Powerful God

29 Jun

LightningI’ve been posting about our need to walk in the power of God. It’s beyond question that we serve a God of power. He doesn’t have to merely talk about it. In the Old Testament He’s called God Almighty – the all-powerful God.

In referring to Him we say that He’s omnipotent. That means that He has unlimited and universal power. There’s nothing that God can’t accomplish through the working of His power.

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
Hebrews 1:3

This verse literally says that Christ is the beaming out of God’s glory. The Son manifests everything that God is. Part of the glory of God is His power. That tells me that true power is found only in Christ. That’s why it’s so important that we spend time with Him. Paul understood this concept intimately.

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:10-11

How badly do you want to walk in the resurrection power of Christ? Do you know Christ in the power of His resurrection? This is the unbridled power of God that raised Christ from the dead.

The good news is that you can know Christ in this way. If it was possible for Paul, then it’s within your reach, if you’re willing to put forth the effort that an intimate relationship with Christ requires.

I’ve found that if you talk about power enough, then people will send you money just to hear your words. Sadly, there are many others who’ve made this same discovery. Most of them have found a lucrative place on Christian TV. They’re getting rich, while God’s people remain sick, poor, weak, and bound by sin.

My goal is to help the church to once again walk in spiritual power. Simply put, I’m not satisfied with the talk of power that’s prevalent in the church today. It’s time for the church to accurately portray who Christ is.

Jesus is Savior, Healer, Redeemer, Provider, and Life-Giver. I want to be a catalyst for change. I want to see lives changed by the power of the Spirit of God. I want to be able to understand both the Scripture and the power of God.

Only as we are willing to spend time with the Lord, will we see the power we desperately need. That’s why the Holy Spirit is always trying to draw us into His presence. That’s the place of power.

Question: What will it take for us to walk this road?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on June 29, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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The Price of the Power

27 Jun

MeterI’ve been talking, lately, about the power of God. If we’re going to walk in true spiritual power, then we need to stop talking about it, and admit our lack. We must start with a true, Biblical knowledge of what power is and how to use it.

In the New Testament, the Greek word for power is dunamis. It’s the root of our English words dynamic, dynamite, and dynamo. When we study how this word is used in Scripture, we find some interesting things. First of all, we’re faced with the fact that there’s nothing new. Jesus dealt with the same issues that trouble us, when He talked with the religious leaders of His day.

In Matthew, chapter 22, we’re told of an encounter that Jesus had with the Sadducees. They came to Him with a question. It wasn’t that they needed Jesus’ advice. The Sadducees were a Jewish religious group who didn’t believe in the resurrection power of God.

They had a trick question that they used frequently to prove their point. It was about a woman who had seven husbands. They asked; who would be her husband in the resurrection? They were trying to trick Jesus into saying something foolish.

The Lord showed that in actuality the point was not about the question, but about their hearts. Jesus answered their question in a way they didn’t expect. By doing so, He went straight to the source of their problem.

Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.”
Matthew 22:29

The word error in the above verse is a Greek word that literally means roaming from the path. These two issues that Jesus spoke about are the root cause of us leaving the path of truth. The first is; not knowing the Scripture.

It’s very easy to fall into error if you don’t know the Word of God. The second problem is; not understanding the power of God. Every error of false teaching can be traced to one of those two foundations.

Are we guilty of this kind of error? Have we begun to roam from the truth? If we don’t have a proper understanding of the power of God, then the answer is yes. We must understand that the power of God produces change.

That’s true power. If there’s no change taking place in the lives of believers under a ministry, then no amount of talk can produce any power. It’s not about goose-bumps or emotions. Were they healed? Were their lives changed?

The road to seeing the power of God at work is a hard one. It requires humility. The Sadducees of Jesus’ day were not willing to admit their lack, and come to Christ. We must lay aside our pride, and come to the place of brokenness before the Lord.

Question: How far are you willing to change in order to see God’s power work through you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on June 27, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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Why We Choose Talk Over Power

24 Jun

PhoneFor the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.
1 Corinthians 4:20

For a couple of posts I’ve been talking about the power of God. In my last article, we learned that the definition of power was the ability to produce change. If there’s no change taking place in our lives, then no power has been manifest. The simple fact is – when God shows up, things begin to change.

You have to remember that the above passage was written when Christians were the people who were turning the world upside down for the Gospel. In light of this, we must ask ourselves; how powerful is the kingdom of God today?

There are those who might get mad at me and say that you can’t quantify the power of God. That’s because we like to spiritualize things that we don’t understand. There’s an easy way to tell how much of the power of God is being released in our lives and ministries. You simply take into account how much change is being produced.

The unfortunate answer is – not much. In a lot of churches around the country not many are being healed, set free from sins, or seeing great growth in their spiritual lives. The problem is that we’ve become masters at using talk over power.

We say things like, “That was a powerful message.” Or, “We had a powerful service last night.” I’ve also heard, “She has a powerful anointing to sing.”

The fact is, we come to church on Sunday mornings and sing a host of songs about the power of God. Then we sit back and think that because we just sang about it, somehow that means we’re walking in it. If there’s no change, then our power is just words.

If no one leaves the service changed, then there was no power manifested in that meeting. People weeping during the worship service is no indication of power. There are plenty of unsaved actors and singers that can evoke an incredible emotional response from their audience, but that’s not power.

We’ve learned to mask our powerlessness by calling the release of emotion “power”. The bottom line is – no matter how many people wept, no matter how many chills ran down your spine, no matter how many people were slain in the spirit – if no one was changed, then there was no power.

Don’t get me wrong. There are churches around the country where the power of God is manifest at every meeting. People’s lives are being changed daily. But that’s not the norm in America.

If we’re ever to see the real move of God, then we must first come to grips with the truth. We have to desire change. To be hungry for God’s power is to be hungry for change. We must admit our need for God to do His work in us.

Question: Have you seen the power of God at work? If not, are you hungry for change?

© Nicolas Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on June 24, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, The Church

 

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What is Spiritual Power?

22 Jun

SpeedIn my last post I talked about being hungry to see the power of God. Where is it? Why does the church seem so powerless? How do you walk in God’s power? All of these and more were going around inside of me as the Holy Spirit started to work on me.

At one point the Lord spoke to my heart and I realized that because of my background in Electrical Engineering, I already had an understanding of the natural concepts of power. This revelation started a whole new string of questions in me.

Is spiritual power the same as electrical power? Are the laws that govern them the same? Are there parallels between spiritual and natural power? I began from that point and dove into the Word of God.

I realized right from the beginning that most people, ministers included, have no idea what true power is. We have no concept of the nature and function of power.

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.
1 Corinthians 4:20

Paul’s words to us are very clear. When it comes to power in the kingdom of God, we had better do more than just talk. The problem is that most of what we call power in the kingdom today is just that – talk. The first step toward walking in the power of God is to understand what true power is all about.

Let’s start by looking at things from a natural perspective. When we talk about “power” it’s usually in the context of electrical power. We use phrases like power lines, power plant, and power outages. We think of electricity as being a form of power. How can this help us to understand what power is?

Very simply put, the definition of power is the same whether you’re talking about electricity coming into your house, or the power of God to heal the sick. The International Edition of the Webster Comprehensive Dictionary defines it in the following way:

“Power is the ability to act. It is the property of a thing that is manifested in effort or action, by virtue of which that thing produces change.”

Let me boil it down for you. True power is the ability to produce change. Change is the key word in that sentence.

It takes power to transform water at room temperature into hot water for a cup of tea. It takes power to get a one-ton car to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour. It takes power to transform a body from sickness to health. It takes power to change a liar into a saint. It takes power to replace guilt with innocence.

If we understand this correctly, then the verse above should bring new understanding. It’s the assignment of the Kingdom of God to produce change. It’s not about how well you can speak about it. Change is the priority.

Question: Is the church producing change? How has the power of God produced change in your life?

© Nicolas Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on June 22, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, The Church

 

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Where’s the Power?

20 Jun

PowerWhere is the manifestation of the power of God in the church today? It grieves me to see the state of powerlessness that we accept as normal in our generation. I read the Book of Acts and see a world shaken by the testimony of the saints. Healing, prophecy, and miracles were common events. Where’s the power?

I think about the days of revival that have burned throughout this nation’s history. From the Great Awakening to the Charismatic Renewal, there have been many outpourings of God’s strength. How did we lose what was gained? Why are there so few churches that portray the full ministry of Jesus? It drives me to my knees to find an answer. Where’s the power?

When I pray over the sick and few are healed. When I see so many in my congregation burdened with financial need. When I stand with those who are bound by habitual sins that never seem to break. This and more causes me to cry out “Oh God, where’s the power?”

We have become very adept at explaining away and excusing our lack of power. We proclaim that we want to see the power of God at work. But, we continue to do the same thing over and over while expecting different results. That’s insanity. If we’re to experience a new result, we must step out in a new direction. I want this blog to be a catalyst for that kind of change in the body of Christ.

Please understand, I’m not so foolish as to think that God has left us. I don’t believe that He’s stopped working on the earth. No, I believe that if there’s a problem it rests on the human side of the equation. My quest is to find the solution for that problem.

I began to pray and study the Scripture concerning power. God started dealing with me about the major issues that are hindering the flow of His power through us. These hindrances include attitudes and teachings that we have allowed to creep into the church. Many of them sound good on the surface, but they’re short circuiting the power of God in our lives.

I did a lot of repenting over my foolishness as I uncovered new truths that have been ignored in the Word. We, as the church, have been majoring on things that make us fail to draw on the power of the Lord. I believe that now is the time for us to re-examine our ways. It’s time to set our spiritual feet upon the correct paths.

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord…
Acts 3:19

If your desire is to see a manifestation of the power of God in your life, then be prepared for some major changes. Some of the things the Lord brought before me in Scripture challenged the very core of what I thought I believed. But I decided to try it His way rather than continuing in my own ineffectiveness. It’s a choice you’ll have to make if you intend on walking in power.

Question: Is there anybody out there hungry for revival?

© Nicolas Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on June 20, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, The Church

 

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The Missing Ingredient – A Word from God

15 Jun

Different AnointingI’m posting about what’s missing in the church of our generation. Why do we not see the power manifest in the early church? I believe that it’s because we’re not hearing from God the way we should be.

It’s the same thing that Jesus manifested as He ministered throughout Israel. He was very clear about how He walked in this divine power.

Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”
John 5:19

Jesus heard from the Father. That’s the secret to how He could minister the way that He did. It’s the reason why He could heal the sick or walk on water.

It’s also the reason why Peter could boldly say, “In the name of Jesus of Nazareth, walk.” He had heard from the Father. He had already seen this crippled man walking with his spirit.

This experience is what the church of Jesus Christ desperately needs today. We must hear from God. The world needs us to hear from God.

Only then will they see the ministry of Jesus exemplified in us. Only then will they be drawn to the preaching of the cross for salvation. It’s imperative that we once again bring our walk with God to this level.

“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”
John 15:7-8

In this passage Jesus is plainly talking about hearing a Word from God. In the original it says that if you are at home in Me [Jesus] and My words have a home in you, you can ask whatever you wish.

To many Christians this means, “If you memorize the Bible, I’ll give you whatever you want.” How did we ever get so far away from God’s intent?

If Christ was referencing the Bible in this section, it would have been impossible for the disciples to obey it. There were no Bibles for the first generation of believers. They had to rely upon hearing from the Father just as Jesus had done.

As much as I love the written Word of God, I think that we’ve used it to insulate ourselves from the Author. Why spend time seeking to hear God’s voice through the Spirit, when I can open up the Bible and read it for ten minutes?

Yes, we need to read, study, memorize and confess the Scripture. But it’s just as important to hear the Holy Spirit’s spoken Word to us. That’s where the power for the miraculous comes from.

It’s time for the church to once again depend upon a Word from God in order to walk in His power. I believe that this is the next great move of God in His people. He wants to restore to us the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. That’s what will bring about the end-time harvest of souls.

I’m about to say something that will probably make you mad at me, but it’s true none the less. The world doesn’t need any more Scripture. They’re sick of hearing Scripture. What they desperately need is a Word from God.

Who will bring it to them, if not the church? We need a Word from heaven. The first few drops of rain are falling. Will you get yourself into position to receive this anointing? The time is now to prepare.

Question: What does your spirit speak to you about this truth?

© 2016 Nicolas Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 15, 2016 in Healing, Power of God, Revival, What's Missing?, Word of God

 

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Elijah and the Prayer of Faith

10 Jun

KeyI believe that there’s something missing in our Christian experience. That’s the foundation of the next move of God – the restoration of power to His church.

What is this principle that’s eluded us for so long? The good news is that the key is recorded in the very passage we’ve been looking at for the last few posts. James goes on to illustrate the prayer of faith that he’s talking about.

Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.
James 5:17-18

In these verses, James uses the prophet Elijah as an example to us. Remember that this is in the context of the prayer of faith for healing. James mentioned it three times in the previous verses. It’s clear from his comments – Elijah prayed and the rain stopped. He prayed again and the rain returned.

According to James, this is the same type of prayer that will bring healing to the sick. What are we missing? Let’s take a look at the Scripture concerning Elijah’s prayer.

But first, I need to make a disclaimer. Sometimes we, as believers, get all caught up in new prayer “formulas”. You need to be aware, right from the start, that I’m not putting forth a new wording for prayer. On the contrary, I am going to show you a new kind of lifestyle that will usher in the move of God’s power.

Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
I Kings 17:1

This verse is the only one in the Old Testament that shows the events surrounding Elijah and the rain stopping. James said that Elijah prayed and the rain stopped. This is the verse he was referring to.

Have you ever prayed a prayer like this? Have you ever heard a prayer like this? As far as I can see, Elijah was talking to the king, not to God.

What exactly was the prayer in this verse? We need to understand that not all prayers fit into the “dear God” category. The scope of prayer is a lot deeper than we can fathom sometimes.

In this encounter, even though Elijah was speaking to the king, he was invoking the name of the Lord over the situation. He was speaking, on God’s behalf, to the king.

Prayer, in its simplest form, is invoking the name of the Lord into a situation. That’s what Elijah did. He was speaking out a divine truth to the king.

In my next post we’ll see what’s so important about this kind of prayer.

Question: How does this compare to your thoughts about what a prayer should be?

© 2016 Nicolas Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 10, 2016 in Healing, Prayer, Revival, What's Missing?

 

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Where Did We Lose It?

06 Jun

SunriseIn my last post, I talked about divine healing from James’ perspective. It sounds to me, from his writings, that he had a 100% success rate in the area of praying for the sick. Without a doubt the early church had a higher walk than we do. The miraculous was an everyday occurrence.

But, if you think about it, that’s to be expected. If we look at the life of Jesus, we see the exact same thing. He had a 100% healing rate as well.

The example of Jesus. There is no hint, in the Gospel record, of anyone coming to Him for healing and leaving disappointed. We are the ones who make excuses for not being healed.

“Maybe this is the only way God could teach me a lesson.”

There’s no record of Jesus ever refusing to heal someone because He wanted them to “learn something” they couldn’t get any other way. Praise God that you got closer to the Lord during your illness. We learn many things during times of affliction. But to think that the reason you’re not healed was for the purpose of teaching you something, goes against the clear Word of God.

The example of the disciples. From the Scripture we know that the disciples had a front row seat in observing the life of Christ. They ate, slept and traveled with Him. They saw His highs and lows. They saw Him with the crowds, as well as how He lived His life in private.

He was their example for how they were to live their lives after He returned to the Father. It’s not surprising, then, that the apostles of Christ also had a 100% healing rate in the Scriptures. There’s no hint that they ever prayed for someone with no results.

The next generation. The power of the Lord manifest through His people didn’t even end there. The next generation of believers – those first saved under the apostles – had the same success. Men like Paul, Philip, James and Jude walked in the power of the Spirit to a degree we can’t even imagine.

Were they any different from us? Was their God different from our God? No way! That’s what led me to ask the question – is something missing?

Where we lost it. It wasn’t until the next generation of believers that we start to see a change taking place in the life of the church. In talking to the Corinthians, Paul makes note of the fact that they were acting in carnality – like a bunch of babies. He then makes the following indictment.

That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
1 Corinthians 11:30

This was not an acknowledgement of what church should be like. Rather, it was a warning that something was wrong and needed fixing.

It should also serve as a warning to us. It should drive to seek the Lord and the power of His presence. It should bring us to a place of seeking and listening in the spirit.

Question: How much are you willing to change in order to position yourself for the next move of God?

© 2016 Nicolas Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 6, 2016 in Healing, Power of God, Revival, What's Missing?

 

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The Challenge

18 May

ClimberIf you’re not facing any challenges, then you’re not living up to your full potential in Christ. That statement is true, whether we want to hear it or not. As much as we’d like a nice easy road, that’s not what the Lord promised us.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

Many Christians would rather bury their heads in the sand than face the truth. We’re in a battle. We’re fighting for the souls of the men and women around us. Most of them are not even aware of what’s really going on in the spirit.

The good news is that Christ has already won the victory. We’re simply a part of the clean-up crew. We’re here to enforce the Lord’s victory on the enemy’s kingdom. We’re to open up the prisons and bring healing to the scarred and hurting – spiritually speaking.

It’s not all about my agenda and what I want to accomplish. I need to yield my life to the will of Christ. After all, He’s the Commander and Chief. He’s the one who gives us our marching orders.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
Ephesians 6:10

I might be dating myself, but one of my favorite Sci-Fi movies is The Matrix. It had an interesting concept. Because they lived in a virtual world, if they needed to know Karate, they could just download it into their brain. If they needed to fly a helicopter, they could download that knowledge.

It’s too bad that doesn’t work for us – even though some Christians try that technique in their spiritual lives. We sometimes think that we can do our own thing, then when we get into trouble, we can pray.

Many people find out too late that this strategy doesn’t work very well. I can’t wait for the enemy’s attack, then suddenly learn to resist him. The time to prepare is before the problem.

The “secret” to overcoming is in knowing where our strength comes from. We’re told to be strong in the Lord. That’s where we prepare for the struggle.

That’s why it’s so important to remain in Christ. We need to be a people of prayer, even when everything seems to be going smoothly along. It’s when we’re spending time in the Spirit that we’re downloading the weaponry needed to overcome our future challenges.

I’m only ready for the problems of life if I am resting in the Lord. It’s His mighty power that will sustain me. Take the time to draw from the Lord’s ability. Be strong in His mighty power.

Question: How can God’s power help you in the challenge you’re facing right now?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on May 18, 2016 in Power of God, Prayer, Prayer in the Spirit, Spiritual Warfare

 

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Born Again – The Wind and the Spirit

06 May

WindThis is my final post in a series about how the Bible defines being born again. Being born of the spirit requires a spiritual work. Jesus tried to describe it in parable form to a Pharisee He was meeting with.

“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
John 3:8

It’s important to understand the Greek language at this point. The word wind and the word spirit are the same in ancient Greek. The only way that the translators differentiate them is by the context in which they appear. As always, context is everything.

Think about it. The natural wind has no mind. It can’t want anything. It can’t try to do anything or go anywhere. The emphasis of this passage is not the wind that we feel in nature. Christ is talking about the Spirit.

Jesus tells us that the Holy Spirit moves wherever He determines to go. He decides on the direction and the outcomes that He’s working towards.

The Lord literally says that you cannot know by seeing where the Spirit is originating, or where it’s going to. You can only hear the sound of the Spirit as He moves in your life at the present time. He concludes by saying that this is how it works for everyone born of the Spirit.

Nicodemus is floored by this concept.

“How can this possibly happen.”

But for us, looking back, this should sound very familiar. There is a gifting through which we can hear the sound of the Spirit, even though we don’t understand what He’s trying to accomplish in us.

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

Your mind has no clue what the Holy Spirit is accomplishing in you as you pray in the spirit. The wind is blowing, but you don’t know where it’s coming from or where it’s going to. Regardless of this fact, your life is changed. The Holy Spirit is bringing you through the birthing process. You are being born again by the spirit into your inheritance.

When you pray in the spirit, you don’t need to understand the syllables you’re speaking. It’s the exchange that’s taking place in your spirit that makes the difference. You hear the sound, and you know that the Holy Spirit is at work in you.

This is the key to experiencing the glory of the Kingdom of God. It’s not about through following a set of rules, but by becoming a new person. We must be born of God into the inheritance of the kingdom.

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
Romans 14:17-18

Remember that only those who are born of God can do righteousness. Peace is living rightly with others in the kingdom. Joy is experiencing the power of our inheritance in the kingdom. All of these together speak of the blessing of being born of God by the spirit.

This verse clearly states that living at this level is pleasing to God. That should be our goal. All of us are accepted by God in Christ. We should want to go the distance to the point where we are pleasing to Him. This requires that we be born of the spirit.

Question: How would living at this level change the face of the church?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on May 6, 2016 in Power of God, Prayer in the Spirit, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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