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SPIRIT WORDS
The words Jesus speaks are “Spirit Words.” They are words which produce Spiritual Life in people. Spirit Words are words which contain “spiritual substance.” They are words which are heavenly inspired, inspirited and delivered Spirit (God) to spirit (man).
The words of Jesus are Truth. The Bible calls the Word of God “Truth.” The “truth” is delivered to man by and through the “Spirit of Truth.” Jesus said when the Spirit of Truth (Holy Spirit), has come, He will guide or lead us into all truth, for He will not SPEAK on His own authority, but whatever He hears from the Father He will speak. (John 16:13).
We are born again by the Spirit of Christ. When we ask Jesus to come into our life, His Word (the seed) enters into our hearts (spirits). We then become a new creation in Christ Jesus through the power of our confession of faith. Jesus, who is the Word, then produces NEW LIFE within us.
The Spirit of Truth sanctifies us and makes us Holy. The Spirit of Truth changes us into the image of Christ as we seek to “know and receive the truth.” When we know the truth, the truth will set us free. The Spirit of Truth fills us with the “divine nature of Christ.” When we become filled with the fullness of Christ, we will be filled with His “divine nature.”
God speaks to us in many different ways. When God speaks to people with His voice, He speaks to them by His Spirit. As Christians we should be able to know and recognize the Voice of God. We should be familiar with His Voice and know it is “His Voice” when He speaks to us. Unfortunately, the door to our hearts are not always open to “hear the Voice of God.”
God speaks to us audibly at times. Other times He may speak to us in a still, small voice. Still other times He may speak in a loud, booming voice as He did when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. There are incidents in the Bible when God spoke and the people thought it had thundered.
God communicates with us in many different ways. Sometimes He speaks to us as we read and absorb His Word. At other times He may speak to us through a sign or a message we hear from a friend or minister as they teach or preach an anointed message. God is always trying to communicate with His people. Unfortunately, His people are not always listening for His voice.
There is also another voice which is always trying to communicate with us as well. It is the voice of Satan. Satan tries to communicate his will and desire to us. He tries to lure us away from God and cause us to sin. Christians should KNOW the voice of the devil, as well as how he operates. The devil’s words are also spirit, but they do not possess or produce any life or truth.
When the devil speaks to people, he speaks to them to confuse and deceive them. He comes to steal, kill and destroy. There is no truth in him. Satan is incapable of telling the truth. The Bible tells us he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44).
I have heard the audible voice of God on a few occasions. I have heard the audible voice of the devil as well. We must be able to distinguish between the voice of God and the voice of the enemy. The voice of the enemy will always lead us in the wrong direction. The enemy will always try to lead us AWAY from the TRUTH and into sin.
Jesus said, “My sheep know my voice and they will not follow another.” (John 10:27). Unfortunately, many Christians have a hard time distinguishing between the voice of God and the voice of the devil because they hide sin in their hearts. I believe that sometimes when the devil is speaking to some individuals, they hope the voice they are hearing is coming from God. At times Satan will appear to people as an “angel of light” in order to deceive them. (2 Corinthians 11:14).
Many Christians have told me God spoke something to them. However, what they told me did not sound like it came from God. God will never tell us anything that is contrary to His Word. God cannot lie. He will never contradict “the more sure word of prophecy” we find in His Word. (2 Peter 1:19). If a voice we hear tells us something which is contrary to the Word of God, the voice is not from God, but the enemy. If we are not walking closely with God, we WILL HAVE A PROBLEM distinguishing between His voice and the voice of the enemy.
Sanctify them by your truth, your word is truth. As you sent me into the world I also have sent them into the world. John, ch. 17, vs. 17- 18.
We are sanctified (set apart) by the Word (Spirit) of Truth. We see at the beginning of this Chapter that the scripture says words of Jesus are “Spirit Words.” Jesus speaks to us through the Spirit which dwells within Him. The words of Jesus have the same power which the Father possesses. Jesus created the World by the power of His words. He said, “Let there be “Light,” and Light appeared. Jesus said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters,” and it was so. (Genesis 1:1-6). All things were made through Christ, and without Him nothing was made which was made. (John 1:3-NLT).
Jesus told the Father He was sending His disciples into the world just as the Father sent Him into the world. Thus, we understand Jesus sends us into the world in the same way as the Father sent Him into the world. Jesus came to “do the works of the Father.” He said He only did the things He saw the Father do. (John 5:19-20).
As Christians we are sent to do the “greater works” which will glorify the Father and the Son. Unfortunately, most Ministers are failing to preach the gospel with signs and wonders following. There are many who are not doing the “greater amount of works” which Jesus said we would do because they do not have enough faith to believe they can do the works Jesus did. Unfortunately, they obey the voice of the enemy rather than the voice of God.
Most assuredly, I say unto you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whosoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise Him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. John, ch. 6, vs. 53-55.
To assimilate means to “absorb and fully understand;” or “to absorb and digest food and nutrients into the body.” The Word of God is called the Bread of Life. The Blood of Jesus is called the New Wine.
When we receive Christ as our Lord and Savior we are figuratively drinking the New Wine (the Blood of Christ) and eating the Bread of Life (His body). When we are eating the Bread of Life and drinking the New Wine, we are partaking of a heavenly feast.
The Feast of Pentecost was a type and shadow of the New Birth. When Jesus was speaking of “eating His flesh” and “drinking His blood,” He was speaking of fulfilling the Feast of Pentecost. Jesus was the Lamb of God whose Blood was shed on the Cross to redeem mankind from the curse of sin.
When we are “assimilating” the Word of God, the Light of understanding illuminates our hearts. When we eat of the Bread of Life, we are spiritually digesting the divine nutrients or virtues which help us to grow spiritually in order to become Christ-like.
A few years ago n one of my trips to “heavenly places,” I found myself standing before Christ Jesus. As He spoke to me I could feel His words go “inside” me and become a part of me. His words were powerful and wonderfully stirring and inspiriting.
I believe the Lord was showing me how “assimilating” and “absorbing” His Word works. When we hear the Word of God spoken, we do not usually feel the Word as it enters into our hearts. Yet, the scripture tells us the “Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12).
When we get a “revelation” from the Holy Spirit, it is like a “Light” has been turned on inside our spirit and mind. Receiving “revelation” is also a way of receiving, absorbing and assimilating the “Word of God.”
The Word of God is like a refiner’s fire which cleanses the soul of all its impurities and blemishes. The Word replaces the “old man” with the powerful virtues of the “new man” when we grasp, understand, accept and receive the Word with thanksgiving. When the “old man” is crucified, something “NEW” must replace the “OLD” or the “old man” will raise his ugly head and say I AM BAAAACK!
A few years ago I heard the testimony of a young girl who had received Jesus as her Lord and Savior at a Children’s Church Camp. She told the camp counselor who led her to the Lord she felt her words go inside of her. When we are speaking the “Words of Christ,” we are planting seeds of Truth and Life. We may not always FEEL the power of the WORD, but the Word of God may still be imparting NEW LIFE into our spirit.
Once I heard the testimony of a lady who said she was reading a book about the Knowledge of God. She said that as she was reading the words in the book they seemed to literally “come off the pages of the book” and “go into her spirit.”
These testimonies are examples of the power which is in the Word of God. As we assimilate the Word of God, we will be changed from glory to glory as our souls are transformed into the “divine image of Christ.”
The Seed (Word) which has been planted into the heart of many Christians is stolen by the enemy before it has had time to take root and grow. Some fail to receive “the Seed” because of their lack of understanding. Others reject the Seed because they are not interested in “pursuing the divine nature.”
Several years ago my wife and I attended a powerful Camp Meeting. The manifest presence of God permeated the entire building. There were many signs, wonders and miracles present at the Camp Meeting. Many people were being touched by the Holy Spirit in their seats as the assemblage sang and the praise and worship team lifted up the Lord with their instruments of praise.
I enjoyed the anointed praise and worship so much I bought a recording of the music and singing. One day I was playing the recording in my car as I was driving down the highway. I was being blessed by the praise and worship just as I had been blessed at the meeting. Suddenly I saw words along with musical notes coming from my audio player. I watched them come toward me and felt them go into my ears and down into my heart.
I believe the Lord was giving me a demonstration of what happens when the power of anointed praise and worship enters into our spirit and the effect it has or can have on us. When we are listening to anointed music, we can feel the music move us to the point of true praise and worship. However, what I saw and felt was supernatural. We can feel the power of God’s presence in praise and worship, but we do not always understand what is happening inside us.
There are many testimonies of the power of God’s Word and how it affects people when they are touched and stirred by His “Spirit Words.” The Word of God is more powerful than a two--edged sword. His Word is able to move mountains, change the course of rivers, and create a universe out of nothing. Surely, He can change the hearts of men and women who choose to seek to be pure in heart as they pursue the “divine nature of Christ.”