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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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What the Modern Church is Missing

13 Jun

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

I’m posting about what I believe is missing from our present Christian experience. In my last article we looked at Elijah’s encounter with the king. According to James, this is the basis of the prayer for divine healing.

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

How does Elijah’s proclamation of no more rain relate to healing the sick? What does this have to do with what James calls, the prayer offered in faith?

The healing prayer of Jesus. How did Jesus “pray for” the sick? I was surprised to find that that the Lord operated the same way. He didn’t ask for God to heal, instead He spoke to the sick.

“Pick up your mat and walk.”

“Go show yourself to the priest.”

“Go rinse your eyes in the pool.”

Jesus prayed healing the same way that Elijah prayed for the rain to stop. I can’t find any instance where Jesus asked God to heal someone.

The prayer of the disciples. It was the same for the disciples. Remember how they prayed healing for the lame man at the temple gate in the book of Acts, chapter 3.

Peter said, “Silver and gold I don’t have. But what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus, walk!” When you think about it, they healed the sick in the same way that Elijah stopped the rain in Israel.

I’ll say it again; I’m not just espousing a new formula for praying. I’m not saying to just go out there and speak healing to the sick. There are plenty who have tried that without 100% success. Instead, I’m talking about the great assumption that’s present in all of these cases.

The missing ingredient. There’s something missing from our Christian experience. It’s the very thing that makes this kind of prayer work.

Think back to the prophet Elijah. What would cause him to speak in such a way to the king? Was he sitting at home reading the newspaper, and suddenly he decided to give the king a piece of his mind? Of course not! There is an assumed chain of events that led to his standoff with the king.

He was at home, in prayer, when suddenly he heard a Word from God. That’s the only explanation for the boldness he had before King Ahab. God spoke to him and said that the rain would stop when he delivered the message to the king.

This is the very example that James uses to illustrate the prayer of faith for healing. The assumption is, that to pray this kind of prayer, you must have heard from heaven. It’s based upon hearing a Word from God.

That, my brothers and sisters, is the missing ingredient in our generation. We’ve lost our ability to hear from God on a regular basis.

Once I realized this, I started to read the Bible through new eyes. I’ve come to see that hearing from God is the great assumption throughout the entirety of Scripture.

What the New Testament authors assumed, was that if you’re mature in Christ, then you’re hearing a Word from God regularly. This was the defining characteristic of Jesus’ ministry. In my next post I’ll show how Christ exemplified this.

Questions: Do you want to hear a Word from God? Do you believe this is what the church of this generation needs?

© 2016 Nicolas Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 13, 2016 in Revival, What's Missing?, Word of God

 

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Born Again – The New Man

27 Apr

SproutIn my last post I looked at a verse that talked about the possibility of becoming born again.

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…
John 1:12

To have the right, simply means that believers have the permission to become sons of God. Do you do everything that you have permission to do? Of course not.

The next verse goes on to tell exactly how this change takes place.

…children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
John 1:13

The term natural descent is talking about our flesh. This born again process is not a work that our flesh can do. Neither is it accomplished by human decision or the will of man. It’s not a process of my mind. I could decide to receive Christ and be saved – I cannot just decide to be born again and have it automatically take place.

God is Spirit. Being born again is a work of the spirit. Yes, we have permission to let it take place in us. But in order to go through with it we must yield to the Spirit. This is a work that can only take place in the spiritual realm.

That brings us full circle to the passage we looked at in the first post of this series.

…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, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
Titus 3:5-7

Paul continues on to say that we have been justified by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s our salvation. It’s the free gift to all who believe in His name. But there’s more. Having entered His saving grace there’s the hope that we might become heirs.

As I said before, Scripture is clear that not all believers will inherit anything. Some will make it to Heaven with no rewards. Their works will be burned up. In order to receive your inheritance you must put on the new man. They’re the ones who overcome the world and receive their reward.

We must come to the understanding that it’s those believers who are born again that can walk in the authority of Christ. It’s not enough to give lip service to the Word of God. It must be a part of your spiritual DNA.

John had a deep understanding of this truth, but so did Peter.

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
1 Peter 1:22-23

Peter is talking to a church that had purified themselves. They allowed the life changing work of the Word to take root in them by immersing themselves in Christ. To these people Peter says, “You have been born again.” He shows us that it’s through the Word of God – the imperishable seed – the work of the rebirth is accomplished in us.

This is an important concept because it shows us what it takes to yield to the Holy Spirit. In my next post we’ll see how Jesus described it in detail to a Pharisee.

Question: How would the church of our generation look if we were all immersed in Christ?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on April 27, 2016 in Revival, Spiritual Walk, The Gospel, Word of God

 

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The Holy Spirit, the Word, and the Blood

09 Mar

cross 2Very often we like to talk about the Holy Spirit. But there’s a work of the Spirit that we don’t usually look forward to. But whether we like it or not, it’s important to let the Spirit have His way in us.

Look at what Jesus said in the section of the Gospel of John where He was talking about sending the Holy Spirit.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”
John 15:1-4

So when Christ talks about remaining in Him, He means that we continue to commune with the Holy Spirit. If that’s the case, then who’s doing the life-changing work in us? It must be the Holy Spirit’s job.

We may not like it, but the Spirit of God was sent to prune us to greater fruitfulness. Even the Apostle Paul understood this.

For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
1 Thessalonians 4:7-8

In the original Greek language this verse reads, God did not call us to be unpruned. No one in the kingdom of God should be unpruned. If we reject this work, then we’re rejecting the Holy Spirit. That’s probably why He gets grieved over us sometimes.

So it’s clear from the Gospel of John that the Spirit prunes every branch.

The Lord told the Disciples that they were already pruned because of the Word He spoke to them. How can that be the case? Jesus explained it to the disciples.

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
John 6:63

They were pruned because Words Jesus spoke were Spirit and Life. So what exactly is it that prunes us? I want to look at one more verse to help us see an incredible truth.

How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!
Hebrews 9:14

Here we see the Holy Spirit working together with the blood of Christ to cleanse us. This is a powerful work of God in us. It all works together for our righteousness.

We need to understand the interactions of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and the blood of Christ. In my next post we’ll look deeper into this life-changing aspect of God’s grace.

Question: How has your life changed since you let the Holy Spirit work in you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on March 9, 2016 in Revival, Spiritual Walk, Word of God

 

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The Pattern of Faith and Obedience

07 Mar

ProfitI’m posting about the miracle of Jesus turning the water into wine. In my last article we saw that Jesus had not stepped into His role as Messiah yet. In this one instance He’s acting as God in the flesh.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
John 2:7-8

In this passage, Jesus is speaking as God – not man. The servants are hearing the Word of God. What will they do with what they hear?

Step one is easy. It takes no faith at all to fill the jars with water. That in itself must have taken a lot of time. Each jar held about 20 to 30 gallons. Drawing water from a well was time consuming.

It’s the same thing in our lives. The first part of faith is the easy stuff. We hear the Word of God to us. We accept it, meditate on it, and declare it.

Then comes step two, when you have to trust in the Word of God. The hard part for the servants was when Jesus told then to take this “water” to the master of the banquet for him to taste. They would have looked like fools if nothing had happened.

That’s why it’s important for us to continue to do what we know to do. We walk by faith in the Word of God. Even when it doesn’t look like anything out of the ordinary is happening. It’s the obedience of faith that brings about the miracle.

Hearing God’s Word is not enough. We need to move ahead and walk in it. That’s the sign that we truly believe it. That’s when the world sees that Jesus is Lord.

Through this miracle, the disciples got a glimpse into who Jesus really was. He wasn’t just a good teacher with a message for Israel. He was God taking on flesh to reveal Himself to lost humanity.

That’s why the Gospel says…

This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
John 2:11

The word first in this passage literally means the first in priority. It doesn’t mean the first in order – like 1, 2, 3. (Actually, the first miracle recorded by John was when Jesus saw Nathaniel under the tree before they met.)

What this verse is saying is that the miracle of turning the water into wine was the most important miracle of Jesus. It was through this that He revealed to the disciples that He was God. It proved to them that they could trust His Word.

When the Lord spoke to them, they knew that whatever He said would come to pass just as He said it would. We need to operate on that level of faith.

That’s how the words of Jesus are introduced to us in the Gospel of John. That’s why it’s so important for us to understand that John was writing to the church. It’s for God’s people to learn to walk the same way Jesus did.

The church needs to learn this lesson. If we want to see miracles to a greater degree it will require more than just church attendance. Listening to God’s Word is not enough. Hearing and obeying must become the pattern of our walk with God.

We need to be praying for the grace to hear and obey. Pray for the power of the Lord to be evidenced in us. The power to walk His road, hear His voice, and then to follow through on His instructions.

Question: What were the last instructions that you heard from the Lord that you need to obey?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on March 7, 2016 in Faith, Power of God, Spiritual Walk, Word of God

 

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Climbing Higher

02 Mar

CliffAs the weather starts to get warmer, I begin thinking about the outdoors again. If you follow this blog, then you know that I enjoy hiking. There’s nothing I like better than spending a few days in the woods; hiking, praying, and meditating on the Word of God.

It seems that the more time I spend hiking, the more insight I get into those Scriptures that speak of our “walk” with God. Sometimes it’s an uphill climb.

Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. Then will I go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.
Psalm 43:3-4

I think that it’s funny when I hear people talking about our emotions in terms of mountains. They say things like, “Some days you wake up on the top of a mountain, and some days you find yourself in the valley.”

I say that it’s funny for the following reason. I’ve hiked hundreds of miles of trails. I’ve spent countless nights in the woods. Yet I have never once fallen asleep in the valley and woke up on the top of the mountain.

There’s only one way to get to the mountaintop. That’s by putting one foot in front of the other, and continuing on the uphill climb.

If you want to ascend God’s holy mountain – to enter His presence – you must take His route. You won’t get there by accident. Unfortunately we’re incapable of following that path. It’s much too difficult a climb for us. It requires absolute perfection.

The Good News is that the Lord knows this and has provided a way for us. He has sent His Guide to us. We have access to the Light of His Spirit and the Truth of His Word. They’re what’s needed to bring us just as we are into the Lord’s awesome presence.

What I need to learn is that I’m not admitted into the presence of God because of my struggling to ‘be good’. It doesn’t have anything to do with me being a pastor or minister. I can enter His holy presence because of the work Jesus Christ did on the cross.

Now, because of His work, I can access the mountaintop through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. This is a blessing we could have never attained to on our own.

It should be our daily oasis. Simply spending time in His light and His truth should bring refreshment to our soul and usher us before the Creator of the universe.

It’s up to us to pick the time and the place with the fewest distractions. We want our time with Him to be fruitful. It’s very important that you use this time to build your relationship with the Father. Enter His presence today and enjoy His company. Follow His truth and light to take you on the path up His holy mountain.

Question: What have you learned by spending time in God’s presence?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on March 2, 2016 in Prayer, Spiritual Walk, Times in the Wilderness, Word of God

 

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Picking Up the Sword of the Spirit

03 Feb

FireI’m posting about the Sword of the Spirit – the rhema of God. In my last post we saw that using this sword means to hear a Word from God and then act upon it.

Paul talked about our speech in the book of Romans. He tells us what righteousness does and doesn’t say. This is what it says if you take out all of the “don’ts”.

But the righteousness that is by faith says: “…The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming…
Romans 10:6-8

“It” is the righteousness by faith. Scripture makes it clear that the rhema is near you – in your heart and in your mouth. He also calls it the rhema of faith.

We know that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. That’s why we must spend quality time with God – praying in the spirit.

As I do that, He puts His rhema in my heart, and then it overflows from my mouth at the right time. The modern church has yet to learn to use this powerful weapon. The early church used it to turn the world upside down.

Before they had any Scripture. Before MP3’s, Bluerays, TV, Radio, or the Internet. They evangelized their world with only the rhema of God. I believe the next great revival will spring from the church laying hold of this truth.

The rhema of God is a necessity. We can’t fulfill God’s plan without it.

In Romans chapter 13, Paul talks about the authorities established by God. In context it’s talking about the government as our authority.

But since he used the general word authority, it can be applied to anyone with God given authority delegated to them. That means it applies to the church since we’ve been given authority to trample the enemy’s kingdom. We’ve been commanded to set the captives free.

Listen to what Paul says about those who walk in God’s authority.

For he is God’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.
Romans 13:4

This is something that every believer needs to hear. He does not bear the sword for nothing. We weren’t given the sword to take it out and wave it around on Sunday mornings. It’s not merely an ornamental piece to be put up on display.

It’s the power of God given to the church to break the enemy’s hold over the souls around us. Unfortunately much of the church has been ignoring the sword. It’s time to pull it out and use it to drive the enemy back.

“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

This is how God gets glory from our lives. This is how we see the supernatural on a daily basis. It all springs from time spent in the spirit. We hear the voice of the Spirit, and then let the rhema of God do its job – destroying the works of the evil one.

Question: How would evangelism change if the church used the sword of the spirit?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on February 3, 2016 in Faith, Prayer in the Spirit, Revival, Word of God

 

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The Sword and the Word

01 Feb

KeyI’m taking a few posts to talk about the Sword of the Spirit. This is our most important piece of weaponry in the spiritual battles we face.   In my last article we looked at the Greek word rhema. In Ephesians it said that the Sword of the Spirit is the rhema of God.

The rhema of God is revelation knowledge from the Holy Spirit. That’s what the gates of hell can’t stand up against. Jesus mentioned this to His disciples.

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
Matthew 10:34

By His death, burial, and resurrection, Christ was bringing us what we needed for victory. He released a power that could overcome all the attacks of the enemy.

Under the Old Covenant they had no spiritual weapons. All of their battles had to be fought in the natural. That’s why there were so many death penalties. The only way to stop the spirit of adultery was to put to death the person who was controlled by it.

Now we’re under a new and better covenant. It’s interesting to see that nowhere in New Testament are we told that God will fight our battle for us. We now have a weapon that the enemy can’t defend against. He can debate the Bible with you. But there’s no defense against the revealed Word of God spoken against him.

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
Hebrews 11:3

The rhema of God created the universe – everything – both visible and invisible.

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

The universe – both visible and invisible is sustained by the rhema of His power. So it’s clear from Scripture that the rhema of God is the power of God.

This is also the power of God in me.   When I hear from the Spirit of God, I’m receiving His power. When I act upon that Word, I’m walking in the power and authority of the Lord. So using the Sword of the Spirit means that I’m hearing from God and acting on it.

Quoting Scripture didn’t create the world. Quoting the Bible doesn’t sustain the world. It’s the Word of His power.

It’s the rhema of God that formed the atoms of all that we see. It’s the rhema of God that keeps them arranged the way they are. But the rhema of God can also rearrange them. When I hear from God and say “Be healed” by the rhema of God…cancer cells become healthy cells.

“That’s good for a pastor or an evangelist, but not me.”

“He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”
John 8:47

He who belongs to God hears the rhema of God. Do you belong to God? Then it’s for you. Spend time in the Lord’s presence and expect to hear a Word that will change your life.

Question: Why aren’t more believers listening for God’s voice?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on February 1, 2016 in Power of God, Prayer in the Spirit, Spiritual Warfare, Word of God

 

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God’s Word – The Sword

29 Jan

SwordI want to take a few posts to talk about the greatest weapon that we’ve been given. Without it we’ll never overcome the enemy. Unfortunately, many Christians have never even picked it up.

Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:17

This verse is talking about the authority and power of God. He wants to work this through us. In order for that to happen, we must use what He’s given to us. The greatest gift we could be given is the sword of the spirit – the rhema- word of God.

Remember, we’re talking about the armor of God. This is His personal armor and weaponry. That means that this is the sword of the Lord.

Our knowledge of this got watered down over time; especially since the advent of the printing press. With the proliferation of Scripture we have come to assume that whenever we read word of God, it means the Bible.

Please don’t turn me off before I explain this next statement. It may come as a shock to you. You might even think that I’m in error. But the fact is that a careful reading of Scripture will bear me out.

The Bible is not our sword of the spirit. The sword Paul is talking about is a spiritual weapon that wreaks havoc on the enemy.

It’s clear from the Bible and our experience that the devil doesn’t fear the Bible. He actually has it memorized. He even does his best to use it against us. He tried to use it against Jesus – and failed miserably.

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'”
Matthew 4:5-6

The devil doesn’t fear to hear or use the Bible. According to the verse from Ephesians it’s the rhema of God that’s our spiritual weapon.

Does that mean I don’t need the Bible? Absolutely not! We’re to study to show ourselves approved.

“If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?”
John 5:46-47

In the literal Greek of this verse, Jesus said, “If you don’t believe what was written, how will you believe my rhema?” It’s the knowledge of Scripture that gives us the foundation we need to hear, trust and obey God’s word to us.

That’s what the sword of the spirit is all about. The Greek word Rhema is the revealed word of God to me…and to you. That’s the greatest weapon of the church – God speaking to us.

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
Matthew 16:16-18

Christ is building His church on the rock of the revealed will of God. It’s that word of God that brings the victory. The gates of hell can’t stand against it. It’s this revealed word of God that I want to talk about for a few posts.

Question: How has God spoken to you personally in the past?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on January 29, 2016 in Faith, Power of God, Word of God

 

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How to Turn Dirt into a Garden

20 Jan

Flower GardenIn my last post I started a “dirt” theme. I talked about a verse in James that tells us how to bring about the changes we need in our lives.

Today I want to ask a related question. How do you turn plain old dirt into a beautiful garden? James tells us the answer a few verses before the one we looked at last time.

He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
James 1:18

The answer to our question comes with the realization that the difference between dirt and a garden is the seed that’s planted. You put the seed into the dirt, water them, and all by themselves the flowers grow.

At some point a transformation takes place. There’s a change from a patch of dirt to a garden. Even though the dirt is still there, people will say, “Look at the wonderful flowers.” I’ve never walked by someone’s garden and said, “Hey, that’s really great dirt.”

In the last post we were told by James that in order to remove the evil in us, we need to humbly accept the Word planted in us. That’s what I’m talking about. Today’s verse tells us that the Lord gave us new birth through the Word. It’s the Word of God that breathes new life into us.

He wants us to be a kind of firstfruits for His glory. Farms go through the same transformation that a garden does. It starts out as dirt, but the emphasis changes to tomatoes, wheat or whatever was planted.

“Who cares about the dirt; look at all those watermelons!”

It’s the same way in our lives. As we allow the Word of God to take root in us, people no longer emphasize the “dirt” that we’re dealing with. It’s the fruit of the Spirit that catches their attention. As I accept the seed of the Word into my heart, it can transform my life. Instead of dirt, I’m now considered firstfruits to God.

This is actually a humbling experience. When the focus turns to the fruit, it no longer has anything to do with us. After all, the dirt has nothing to do with what kind of plant is grown. That’s determined by the seed.

When people see the fruit of the Spirit in us, it’s all the work of God. The humbling admission is that I’m nothing, just a patch of dirt, without His Word in me.

Allow the life transforming Word of God to change you into firstfruits for His glory.

Question: How has the Word of God transformed your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2016

 
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Posted by on January 20, 2016 in Power of God, Revival, Spiritual Walk, Word of God

 

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