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| My help comes from the Lord, who resides within me |
Partnership is a mutually
beneficial relationship between two people. If you want to lift a piece of
furniture and you don’t have enough strength to do so, you don’t go to the gym to
exercise your muscles, you ask for help; someone that will partner with you and
complement for your weakness. Not all believers of Christ are aware of the
importance of the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. There are many Christians who
pray like orphans, who are overwhelmed by the feeling of helplessness and would
cry about their lack of power and ability. They are in pursuit of human help to
complement their inadequacies. Just what is the Holy Spirit doing in us?
"The Holy Spirit
is everything to us
that Jesus
was to His disciples
during His
earthly ministry"
There is an erroneous belief among
Christians that they should roll everything upon God without lifting a single
finger for anything. One of my social media friends (a believer) updated her
status saying, “I am so sick. Jesus please help me." I replied, “Jesus
won't except you rebuke the sickness in His name.” Guess what? She stopped
talking to me and will not reply my messages. Often times we want to do God's
job while we leave undone what He requires of us. No sweet dear, we
are in partnership with Him and that is why we have received the Holy
Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is everything to
us that Jesus was to His disciples during His earthly ministry. He teaches, He
comforts and He helps us. He supplies what is lacking on our part as humans. A
great Christian experience is only possible because of our partnership with the
Holy Spirit. A brother once said Jesus did not commend us to a book but rather
to the Holy Ghost. What a profound statement. Without a Bible the early church commanded
such profound result recorded in the Book of Acts. What was their secret? A
life that is totally dependent on the Holy Ghost.
Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the Father-Son dwelling in us (John 14:23). He
is the Spirit of God (Romans 8:9)
and also the Spirit of Christ (1Peter
1:11 and Romans 8:9). The Holy
Spirit is Christ in us (2Corinthians
3:17). If we are yet to understand that, we are barely living in the
reality of God’s existence in us. We may say it, read it but the outworking of
it will elude us. To some God is far up there. He is the Big Man in the sky,
the Jesus that may pass them by in a meeting if they don’t do some gymnastics (Pass
me not O gentle Saviour). When the truth is that the Father-Son is within them
and walking within them. We need to be put in constant reminder that God is
within us, because we can be ignorant of it unintentionally.
Do you not discern and understand that you
[the whole church at Corinth] are God's temple (His sanctuary), and that God's
Spirit has His permanent dwelling in you [to be at home in you, collectively as
a church and also individually]? 1 Corinthians 3:16 Amplified
What agreement [can there be between] a temple
of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God; even as God said, I
will dwell in and with and among them and will walk in and with and among them,
and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 2 Corinthians 6:16
Amplified
We are born again because we were
born by the Spirit immediately we believed (2John 1:9). We are at a disadvantage if we don't always acknowledge
who the Holy Spirit is, where He is and what He is doing. Without communication
there can’t be partnership, we would walk and work in contradiction.
Do two people walk hand in hand
if they aren't going to the same place? Amos 3:3 Msg
And if a house is divided (split into factions
and rebelling) against itself, that house will not be able to last. Mark 3:25 Amplified
What does the Holy Spirit Do in
us?
If the Holy Ghost is the
Father-Son in us, what do you think He is doing? The Father guides us, so the
Holy Ghost does exactly that with us. The Son teaches us and instructs us,
that's just what the Holy Ghost does within us.
"The Father is
God FOR US,
Jesus is
God WITH US
and
the Holy Spirit
is God resident
WITHIN US"
The Father needed us to see Him
as He is so we can walk in His examples and so He came to earth known to us as
Jesus. Jesus walked among men and unveiled the hidden Father to us, but He was
limited in that body to be with and personally help each of His disciple
individually. Therefore He said, "Nevertheless
I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not
away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him
unto you." Jesus, the Father in the Flesh wanted to abide with His
disciples forever but He couldn't do that in the form he had during His earthly
ministry until He had ascended; now He dwells in every of his disciple, He is
now known to us as the Holy Spirit.
We can simplify it by looking at
it this way: The Father is God FOR US (Ezekiel
36:9), Jesus is God WITH US (John
13:33) and the Holy Spirit is God resident WITHIN US (John 14:17). Not three people! Just God manifestly occupying every are of our lives. God is residing within us meeting our daily individual
need. This was what Christ couldn't do in the flesh but now made available to
us by the Holy Ghost. If we've embraced this at least 30%, our general outlook
of life will be different and our daily activities will surge with life. By the Holy Spirit in us we can
access and receive God's help and guidance daily every minute of each day. Three
practical examples stems from that standpoint:
I CAN DO ALL THINGS
I can do all things through
Christ which strengtheneth me.
What did he mean? He meant all
things are possible to him because Christ generates and channel strength (ability)
to him. How many things could Paul do? Some things? Few things? No! All things.
He could surmount obstacles, endure hardships and stand before the chief
priests and kings not because Gamaliel taught him (as some still argue today),
but because he receives ability to do so through Christ within him. How did
Christ energise Paul to do all things?
May He grant you out of the rich
treasury of His glory to be strengthened and reinforced with MIGHTY POWER in
the inner man BY THE [HOLY] SPIRIT [Himself indwelling your innermost being and
personality]. Ephesians 3:16
Amplified
Paul receives strength through
the Holy Spirit dwelling in Him. Christ does not empower us from above. No, He
does it from within us where He now dwells. In the light of this it wouldn’t be
accurate to pray the Davidic prayer,
"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my
help" Psalm 121:1. Rather I'll paraphrase the verse
two of the same Chapter, "My help cometh from the Lord, who resides within
me." The Lord will supply help to me
not from above but from within me where He dwells. Blessed be God forevermore.
We read in Acts 4:8, 7:55, 13:9 when Peter, Stephen and Paul respectively
was about to undertake a certain task this phrase was used, "Being filled with the Spirit" Many
people had the idea that it is God pouring more of the Spirit from above, no it
is not. It is the Spirit within us sipping out to the surface, equipping our
minds, enveloping our entire body. He eliminates both mental and bodily
weakness due to our mortality and makes us fit to undertake the task at hand.
Take for instance Acts 4:8,13
Then Peter, filled with the Holy
Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel… Now when
they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that THEY WERE UNLEARNED
AND IGNORANT MEN, They marvelled; and THEY TOOK KNOWLEDGE OF THEM, that they
had been with Jesus.
We might have the thought that
another measure of the Spirit was added to Peter from above to speak at that
time but consider the words of Jesus,
But when they deliver you up,
take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that
same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but THE SPIRIT OF
YOUR FATHER WHICH SPEAKETH IN YOU. Matthew
10:19-20 KJV
We see it is just same Holy Ghost
in Peter all along that poured Himself to the surface, taking hold of his lips,
so that although Peter is unlearned, he could speak with divine understanding.
It is for the purpose of enjoying this lifestyle on a daily basis that the Holy
Ghost through Paul admonishes us:
And be not drunk with wine,
wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; [19] Speaking to yourselves
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your
heart to the Lord. Ephesians 5:18-19
KJV
Each time we speak in psalms,
hymns making melody to the Lord, we are stirring the Spirit to rise from within
us. Are you in need of counsel? If
you stir up the gift in you, He will rise and give you counsel. Do you need to
get your house chores done when you are tired? Ask the Holy Ghost He'll generate
the strength you need.
"He eliminates
both mental
and bodily
weaknesses...
He makes
us fit..."
I know a farmer who was making
beds on his farm all week long, he was exhausted and about to quit, then He
remembered this scripture, "But if
the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that
raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his
Spirit that dwelleth in you" (Romans
8:11). He just asked the Holy Ghost to quicken his feeble, mortal,
energy-zapped body and He believed he received the strength needed and went
back to work. He finished making the beds ready for planting without feeling
energy drained. In actual sense he couldn’t have felt drained of energy because
the energy came from the Holy Ghost and not from His body.
Praise God, God's word works. Are
you embarking on a task you've never done? The help is within... If you'll ask
the Holy Spirit He will help you. If you recognise His presence and partnership
He will supply what is lacking on your part.
PRAYING EFFECTIVELY
All believers are admonished to
pray without ceasing. That means a life totally yielded to prayer, 24/7 nonstop.
It is a tenacious activity for the human mind and body which is frail and doesn't derive
pleasure from Spiritual things. The Holy Spirit comes in handy, ready to the
rescue. The same Peter, James and John who indulged in sleep and couldn't watch
with our Lord for an hour, when the Holy Ghost dwelt in them they
declared,
But we will continue to devote
ourselves steadfastly to prayer and the ministry of the Word. Acts 6:4 Amplified
What changed about them that made
prayer a delight? The Holy Spirit. When He indwelled us, He brought with him
the Joy of fellowshipping with our Heavenly Father. Prayer now becomes a
satisfying adventure that satiates us.
Not only that, when human
language fails us and all known diction cannot convey the feelings churning within
our deepest depths, He graciously articulates our burdens with a perfect and pure
language acceptable to our Father.
For then [changing their impure
language] I will give to the people a clear and pure speech from pure lips,
that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve Him with one
unanimous consent and one united shoulder [bearing the yoke of the Lord]. Zephaniah 3:9 Amplified
The Spirit knows what we should
pray for. He knows how we ought to pray for it and He takes our place in
prayers. He is our prayer partner. When all prayer points are exhausted, when
no scripture comes to mind, when we are burdened to pray for an unknown cause,
we leave it to Him by praying in the Holy Ghost. When I pray in tongues the
Holy Spirit prays through my lips and utters divine sentences. Hallelujah
Likewise the Spirit also helpeth
our infirmities (in our minds and speech): for we know not what we should pray
for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with
groanings which cannot be uttered. Romans
8:26 KJV
Sometimes people ask me if I have
them in my prayers. I reply, Yes I do. Now I may not have mentioned that
brother or sister in prayer because praying for him/her must be based on our
agreement on a particular request else that prayer will not be effective. If I
don't know their needs I can't pray for them specifically. Why then did I say I
prayed for them? Because the Holy Spirit helped me as it is written:
PRAYING ALWAYS WITH ALL PRAYER
AND SUPPLICATION IN THE SPIRIT, and watching thereunto WITH ALL PERSEVERANCE
AND SUPPLICATION FOR ALL SAINTS. Ephesians
6:18 KJV
And he that searcheth the hearts
knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, BECAUSE HE (SPIRIT) MAKETH INTERCESSION
FOR THE SAINTS ACCORDING TO THE WILL OF GOD. Romans 8:27 KJV
When I pray in the Holy Ghost the
Spirit is making intercession and supplications not for me alone, not for some
saints, or those I have in mind but for All Saints of God even when I don't
know their needs. The Holy Spirit is 100% prayer effective. He helps me more
than I know or can sum up in words. We are mightily blessed to have Him in us.
POWER READILY AVAILABLE
When Christians pray for more power
so they can walk in the supernatural, we ought to be surprised. How did we attain
to such spiritual poverty? Consider these scriptures:
But if I do, though ye believe not me, BELIEVE
THE WORKS: THAT YE MAY KNOW, AND BELIEVE, THAT THE FATHER IS IN ME, AND I IN
HIM. John 10:38 KJV
Believest thou not that I am in the Father,
and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: BUT
THE FATHER THAT DWELLETH IN ME, HE DOETH THE WORKS. John 14:10 KJV
How did Jesus do the works of
healing and miracles? The Father in Him did it. Is that same Father in you? If
He is, has He quit being who He is because He now dwells in you? Certainly not!
Thank God forevermore. He is there to continue the Work He began through His
son. Healing and delivering from the devil's captive.
We tend to think that by our own
power and holiness, or how much we fast we will be capable to move in the power
of God. Peter never declared such at the beautiful gate. Don't misunderstand me
now, we should exercise ourselves in prayers and fasting and study of God's
words but to think healing will happen primarily because we fasted for days is
ridiculous.
Then said Jesus to them again,
Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. John 20:21 KJV
How did the Father send Jesus?
The answer came from the lips of Peter.
How God anointed Jesus of
Nazareth WITH THE HOLY GHOST AND WITH POWER: WHO WENT ABOUT DOING GOOD, AND
HEALING ALL THAT WERE OPPRESSED OF THE DEVIL; FOR GOD WAS WITH HIM. Acts 10:38 KJV
Are you anointed? It is not with olive oil, it is being anointed with the Holy Ghost, He is the anointing. If
you are anointed with the Holy Ghost you would do same and greater works.
But the anointing which ye have
received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as
the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and
even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. 1 John 2:27 KJV
People may say the early Church
prayed to God for power to do miracles. No they did not.
And now, Lord, behold their
threatenings: and GRANT UNTO THY SERVANTS, THAT WITH ALL BOLDNESS THEY MAY
SPEAK THY WORD, [30] By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and
wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. Acts 4:29-30 KJV
"It is
boldness we
need
to put
the power to
use"
They asked God for boldness. God
moves mightily when we are bold in His name to preach and declare that He heals and
will heal and deliver anyone. They knew what to ask because Peter and John
acted in boldness at the Beautiful Gate and got result. That miracle took place
publicly before the eyes of thousands. Are you that bold in God? When you are,
we'll get the same results. When we boldly step out we get result and that
result emboldens us more and we get greater results. Notice the circumstances
when Jesus did His first miracle at Cana of Galilee. Mary had to push a little
bit (John 2:1-11). It is boldness we
need to put the power to use.
Needful to say, we are sealed
with the Holy Ghost when we believed but we walk in His power when we are
baptised in the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the Power of God in us. Paul
describes the Holy Ghost in these words:
Now unto him that is able to do
exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power
that worketh in us. Ephesians 3:20
KJV
You see here that the Holy Ghost
is the Power house in us. No power aside of Him. God will do things exceeding
our biggest dreams and manifold imaginations through the Holy Ghost in us. The
answer is in us, not our minds or of ourselves but in the Holy Ghost within us.
You know if you just act upon what is written you'll get the result. I just do
what exactly is written by faith and I have seen God heal and bless and I know
it is not because of my special preparations, just God meeting with people's
problems from within me. I like what Paul said to the Philippians.
For we are the circumcision,
which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no
confidence in the flesh. Philippians 3:3
KJV
Do you still have confidence in
the flesh? That you must attain to a level to be certified and empowered so God
can move through you? Where is your confidence placed? You'll be a great
teacher if you put your confidence in the Holy Ghost and not on your
certificate. You'll be a great and better cook if you’ll rely on the Holy Ghost
and not how you cooked the same meal yesterday or how everyone cooks it. You'll
be a better counsellor if you ask the Holy Spirit counsel rather than read
thousand pages of materials on psychology to get better. You'll be a better
student if you rely on the Holy Ghost more for help to understand topics and
subjects.
God’s Help is in the God within
you. Paul didn't say I can do all things because I am an apostle, or because he
was qualified, or certified or because of his years of experience walking with
God. He said I can do all things (Everything) through Christ that strengthens
me from the inside. Praise God forevermore.
What great things await us when
instead of placing confidence in ourselves we place it in the God who is within
us. The Holy Ghost is our Present Help in time of need. You do not brag on
yourself or anything human. Realise the Father to whom all things are possible
is in you and because of His presence in you all things are possible to you when
you believe.
BELIEVER'S CONFESSION
Thank you Heavenly Father, for
placing your treasure in my earthen vessel. Thank you for your Holy Ghost
dwelling in me, not as a hitchhiker but as my helper. Holy Spirit you are my
present help. I can do all things. I can become better, in character and in
Words because you are in me to help me. Thank you for your help, when I feel
discouraged you comfort me. When I feel unworthy, You are crying out of my
depths Abba Father. I am not powerless, you are in me. I believe you are at
work, you are at work in me. I pray more because you pray through me. I learn
more because you are teaching me all things. I am delivered from fleshly lusts
because you war against the flesh. You are perfecting your Holiness and
glorifying Christ in me. Thank You for being the earnest of my inheritance. You
are the power of the age to come. I believe in you and because of you in me, at
work in me, alive in me, working through me I have no confidence in the flesh.
I believe the Holy Spirit is my partner and without Him I can do nothing no
matter how hard I try. Thank You dear Father for your enablement in me in Jesus
Name. Amen.
Not that we are sufficient of
ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God. 2
Corinthians 3:5 KJV
#simplefaith
#simpletruth
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