Friday, October 30, 2015

To See and Understand

Last week I wrote about the spiritual gift of Discernment.  I would like to continue with another aspect of this gift.

Again, Discernment could simply be defined as the ability to SEE and UNDERSTAND the things of the Spirit.

One way God uses this gift at times is to grant one the ability to see and understand what is happening in the invisible spirit realm. 

Throughout Church history as well as Bible history, people of God have seen visions, angels and demons.

One such account is when Elisha and the city are surrounded by the enemy closing in to destroy them. Yet, he is as calm as ever, with an unexplainable peace. 

His servant is freaking out thinking they are all going to die. So Elisha prayed that the Lord would open the servant's eyes TO SEE and UNDERSTAND (implied). 

2 Kings 6:15-17 (NKJV)
And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?"
16 So he answered, "DO NOT FEAR, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them." 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may SEE." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

When we are up against what seems like insurmountable odds, and it feels like the enemy is closing in, we must not give in to fear! 

Ask the Lord to open your spiritual eyes, to allow the gift of Discernment to operate in your life.

It reminds me of a testimony in my family of my great grandmother. Her husband was away and a great thunderstorm was raging giving her anxiety. 

That very night in the midst of the storm, an Angel appeared in her room telling her not to fear but to trust the Lord. He left the room and she heard his wings flutter as he flew away.

Wow!

God still moves in these miraculous ways.

Are you seeking Him?

Are your eyes open to what He will reveal?

Friday, October 23, 2015

No Condemnation

I want to talk today about the spiritual gift of Discernment. 

Discernment simply means: to see, and understand.

Of course, in the context of spiritual life, it is seeing and understanding what God is doing, what the Holy Spirit is saying, and where He is leading, as well as, what Satan, the enemy, is up to in His evil plans to kill, steal and destroy.

Recently I had a discussion with an individual who was struggling with feelings of guilt. He was trying to Discern what this was all about as he knew he was living right and not in sin.

I would like to draw a contrast between Godly Conviction and Satanic Condemnation.

When we sin, as Christians, our Born Again spirits in communion with the Holy Spirit will convict us for our sin. We have all experienced this. Our God-given conscience will not let us rest until we make things right with the Lord by confessing our sin so that He may cleanse us and forgive us. (1 John 1:9)

However, even after confessing and receiving forgiveness, there can be those lingering feelings of shame, and a reminding in our thoughts of our sin.

This is NOT God. These are feelings of condemnation. The Bible says in Romans 8:1 that there is NO CONDEMNATION  for those who are in Christ Jesus! That is us who are Born Again, living for Jesus, pursuing His Kingdom!

Satan is called, "the accuser of the brethren." (Revelation 12:7-12) He loves to throw our past failures up in our face in an attempt to shift our Identities from a child of God to a powerless sinner.

I came across this Psalm that really spoke into this truth:

Psalm 32 (NKJV)
The Joy of Forgiveness - A Psalm of David. 
32 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent, my bones grew old
Through my groaning all the day long.
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah
5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I have not hidden.
I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,"
And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

King David is expressing first how joyful one feels knowing God has forgiven their sins!

Then he describes the feeling of living with unconfessed sin, as his "bones growing old." He talks about the Conviction of the Lord, as a "heavy hand" upon him. We have all experienced this when we are walking in the flesh and disobeying the Lord.

As a Good Father, He chastens and disciplines those He loves! (Hebrews 12:6) 

The Good News is, there is a solution! In verse 5, David gives us the answer!

Acknowledge our sin.

Confess it to the Lord.

Receive His forgiveness!

There are many topics and subjects in our Christian walk that require Godly Discernment. Get in His Word and grow in your seeing and understanding!