Money vs Supernatural

According to HB London of Focus on the Family, about US$500billion has been spent on ministry in the USA over the past 20 years with little impact on the nation. Mere words and programs, as important as they are, are simply not enough.


Jesus promised in John 14:12 "Trull, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, He will do also, and greater works than these, he will do because I go to the Father"


People desperately need God's healing compassion and power. And the same King who looked on the multitudes and healed them because He felt compassion on them 2000 years ago cares deeply for the multitudes today.


(Extract from the book "God's supernatural power in you" by Frank A DeCenso)

Prophecy for Australia by Kathie Walters

God began to talk to me about His call on Australia. He said, "Kathie, Australia will rise up and declare and demonstrate to the nations, 'CHRIST: THE SERVANT KING.'"

Then tears started to flow down my face (if you know me, you know that I am not a "crying" type of person). I saw a servant's heart -- full of life and joy and serving.  Then I saw a crown descend from heaven and it rested upon the servant's heart. Then I saw a mantle which looked like purple and red, deep velvet, and the words "Dignity and Power" were written above the mantle. Then people were running and there was so much joy and POWER.

They ran across Australia and they ran to other nations -- many had green flags which they carried over their shoulders on  NEW LIFE -- a move of God coming out of Australia    

It's interesting that when Australia hosted the Olympics last time, people came from all over Australia to help and serve those visitors from all over the world.

Australia is the only nation that had 80% of the volunteers actually show up to serve

Other nations asked them afterwards to show them how to serve and host in the same way.
 

THE HEAVINESS IS BEING PEELED BACK

I saw New South Wales, and it was covered by a brown blanket. I know that blanket; I've seen it before. It's a spirit of "False Responsibility" -- a religious spirit that makes people try and do what only God can do. Striving and "trying" takes you out of the Spirit realm and into the flesh-- He is a spirit of rest. (If you want to understand more on that, get a copy of my CD "Getting free and Living in the Supernatural" from my website) But I saw angels lifting the corners of the blanket to peel it back. When the heavy religious spirits go, then the LIGHT SHINES AND THE JOY COMES BACK.

Smith Wigglesworth prophesied that the last great move of God was going to come out of Australia.

In the Hunter Valley I saw angels setting up an encampment Tomorrow (Wednesday 18th Jan) there is going to be more angels released into the encampment. I believe there are other angelic movements happening in other places in Australia right now and in the following months-

 Christ - the Servant King is the gift of God that Australia will reveal to the nations. His power and anointing and kingly crown rests upon the servant heart.

www.kathiewaltersministry.com

Part 2: Walking in the supernatural

The previous post summarized the introduction and first chapter of Guillermo Maldonado book "How To Walk In The Supernatural Power Of God". I have enjoyed this book so much and found it so instructional that it demands more than a single read. 

Blogging about this book is a way of studying it for me. It forces one to think more deeply about what I have read and hopefully by doing so, the important points will stick and cause one to actually begin living them. I have an immense desire to walk in the level of Christianity  described in this book. I hope that as my desire grows for this kind of life, it will cause me to overcome the fear of man, the laziness of the flesh, to put off the weight of sin that so easily besets us and to take the action necessary to walk in the obedience required. Any criticism directed towards the "church" is a generalization and is not meant in anyway to be destructive, but rather as a challenge to rise up from the doldrums of mediocre Christianity. Reading books like this and similar ones, causes me to think that the church practices that I have been exposed to, are way off what they should be. There is little chance of producing the level of Christian described in this book through most current church structures or methodologies. 

A completely new wineskin is required if the power of the Holy Spirit is to be experienced as God intended. There is very little room for God to move in current religious structures or for the average Christian to mature into the fullness of Christ. The current system keeps church members dependent on the "pastor" to deliver the "word". The early church model was very different. There was far more participation by the congregation and there was demonstation of the power of God, not just some well prepared sermon. At least 95% of church services I have attended in my life appeal to the intellect and have had almost no demonstration of the power of God. It is a fact that salvation is the greatest miracle and one could argue that when people respond to the Gospel message that the demonstration of the power of God is evident. I would not completely deny this, but sadly most people who respond to these invitations are not following the Lord a year later and if they are, the level of Christianity being lived is often hard to recognize. As a preacher once said "Be sure that in a court of law, there is enough evidence to convict you of being a Christian". 

The closest I have come to experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit as described by Guillermo in this book, was during my week in Brazil in 2010 with Gary Oates. I also had a tiny taste, way back in the early 1980's when a student at UCT. Those little tastes and reading a book like this, give me hope that there is a "real" Christian experience to be had where the power of God is demonstrated. It is also true that we need to care for our fellow man's physical needs and mercy ministries play an important role. I think that sometimes it may be easier to spend so much of ones effort on these "do good" ministries that the spiritual dimension is neglected. There is the danger of the church simply becoming another humanitarian organisation, as important as these are, this is not the primary calling of the church, but definitely a part of the Church's responsibility.

So back to the book and I wish that I did not have to always be quoting someone else's experience, but until I have enough of a testimony myself, this is the best I can do.

To repeat the summary from the last blog and include a few points I missed:

Summary of Chapter 1

1. God is a spiritual being with supernatural abilities. 

2. He lives in eternity but manifests His presence in our physical dimension.

3. Revelation is the revealed knowledge of God that comes directly into our spirits in an instant, without prior knowledge or research. 

4. The Holy Spirit is the only Source of revelation we need to know God. 

5. All the mysteries of wisdom are hidden in Jesus and are available to the humble who hunger to know God intimately. 

6. The four things that can be known only through revelation are God’s nature, human nature, the origin of man, and the origin of life. 

7. The two sources of supernatural power are God and Satan. 

8. God created man with an instinctual desire for power.

9. The five enemies of supernatural power are ignorance, bad theology, humanism, the spirit of Jezebel, and the carnal mind. 

10. Faith and revelation enable us to live beyond the natural dimension.

Chapter 2

.......this book is for those who deeply desire to experience God’s supernatural power so that they may bless a world that now stands in crisis and hopelessness. To understand and operate in that power, I believe we need revelation and understanding of the kingdom of God. 

What Is the Kingdom of God? 

The kingdom of God is the invisible, divine government that is established on earth when the will of its King has been carried out completely. It is His administration influencing the earth, replacing its mundane operating system and order. The kingdom of God is the lordship and dominion on earth of King Jesus manifested in a visible form. 

Jesus spoke of three divine realms: For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.(Matthew 6:13, emphasis added) 

1. The “kingdom” is the government of God; 

2. the “power” is the ability found in God; 

3. the “glory” is the presence of God. 

The essence of Jesus’ teaching is the kingdom, the power, and the glory.

In Acts 1, Jesus spent around forty days teaching His disciples about the kingdom. His goal was to prepare them for the day when they would receive the power, an event that takes place in chapter 2 and is followed in chapter 3 by the manifestation of God’s glory. 

Today, some ministries teach much about God’s kingdom but with little demonstration of His power. In other ministries, the opposite occurs—there is a great manifestation of God’s power, but little mention is made of the kingdom. In still other ministries, there is teaching on the glory but no manifestation of the power or God’s kingdom. 

Jesus taught His disciples about the kingdom because He understood that to be effective witnesses in a hostile world, they would need the power. Furthermore, He knew that the government and the religious leaders of the day would do anything to eliminate any evidence left behind that might prove His resurrection. 

What Generates the Revelation of the Kingdom in the Believers? 

Structure 

The revelation of the kingdom produces within our spirits a knowledge of how to use God’s authority and how to submit to it. Without this knowledge, such power may destroy people. The subjugation of Satan can be understood only by revelation from the kingdom of God. When we finally understand this, we will see the undeniable superiority of the kingdom of light each time it confronts the kingdom of darkness. 

Order 

Order cannot be established in the absence of government and authority. Without them, chaos and disorder can become dangerous when faced with the power of God.

Vision 

In the absence of vision, principles, character, and a kingdom mentality, supernatural power could be used for other things and not for the expansion of God’s kingdom and the blessings He has for His people. Without the kingdom’s vision, power can become futile or destructive. 

Purpose 

Knowledge—or revelation—of the kingdom must come first in our lives. That principle is still active today. We live in a society that is hostile toward the gospel. It is full of wickedness and iniquity, and, without His power, we would never be able to succeed in it.

What Is the Power of God? 

The Greek word for “power” is dynamis (pronounced dunamis). This word also means “powerful force, potency, or inherent power.” Dynamis is the ability to perform miracles. It is the explosive, dynamic, and inherent power of God—His supernatural ability. Many Christian circles exhibit a negative attitude toward this power because they have never personally experienced or witnessed a physical miracle or a supernatural occurrence. His power is intrinsically tied to the message of the gospel, and this is the difference between Christianity and other religions that cannot produce a supernatural experience. In the book of Acts, the supernatural power of God is present in each of its twenty-eight chapters. At present, countless churches are full of people who are sick and oppressed because they have replaced the power with other things.

Religion is the result of not having an experience with God. 

The church that Jesus left behind in the first century evangelized and established the kingdom using supernatural power as their primary tool. However, with the passing of time—and the influence of the spirit of witchcraft—the expectation of God’s supernatural power has been abandoned, producing the need to seek idealized human tricks and talents as substitutes for the miraculous (e.g. sermonizing). 

Substitutes for the Power of God 

The spirit of witchcraft is in operation wherever you find carnal habits and legalistic practices. 

"Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?"(Galatians 3:5)

The Galatians had started out in the Spirit: they were saved, were filled with the Spirit, and witnessed miracles, signs, and wonders. But witchcraft influenced them to follow unbiblical rules, norms, and carnal ways, which caused them to lose sight of God’s power. 

The church today is in a similar situation. Most Christian movements, regardless of denomination, began with a supernatural revelation from God. Without this, they never would have been able to make an impact in the world. But, how many of them are still operating under the supernatural power with which they began? Sadly, very few. 

At some point, the human soul became a substitute for the Holy Spirit. 

Let us recall that man is a spirit who has a soul and lives in a body. The soul has legitimate functions, but it cannot take the place of the spirit. 

When people begin to put their trust in their own abilities and strength, they move away from the spirit and toward the soul, which includes intellect and emotions. Then, a substitution takes place in which “religion” takes over for spiritual reality. 

Let us look at some of the most common substitutes. 

Theology, lacking inspiration from the Holy Spirit, replaces revelation. 

Theology is man studying God with his human mind and reasoning. This is a proper way to study Him, but in order for it to be effective, man needs the revelation of the Holy Spirit. 

In other words, mankind needs to balance the knowledge he derives from studying God’s Word with the knowledge he gets from the Holy Spirit. This combination of the Spirit and the Word is what transforms our lives. 

Intellectual education replaces character. 

Education occupies an important place in the life of an individual. Thus, it is important for young people to study, pursue educational degrees, and become excellent professionals. However, we must keep in mind that intellectual education does not build or shape their character; it only prepares them to carry out a job. 

The only thing that can shape character and transform the heart of man is the power of God. 

It is very dangerous to train people intellectually without dealing with their character. 

When the carnal (worldly) mind is educated without character training, a well-educated enemy of God results. Some theological seminaries do not believe in the supernatural revelation of the Holy Spirit. Because their only goal is to educate minds without shaping character, their students become enemies of the gospel of the kingdom.

Psychology and psychiatry replace spiritual discernment. 

Psychology is part of the philosophy that studies the soul and the mind. 

Psychiatry is the science that studies the psyche of the human mind and the illnesses connected to it. 

God gave us perception and discernment, both of which help us to discover the root causes of our problems. However, instead of using these, we sometimes seek answers to our spiritual problems with psychological and psychiatric strategies and methods. 

Psychologists and psychiatrists have the best intentions to help people, but they do not deal with the roots of their problems, which are spiritual. They deal only with the symptoms—the branches, which are superficial. 

Man-made programs replace the leading of the Holy Spirit. 

The Bible teaches that in order for our works to prosper, God must take the initiative. (See, for example, Proverbs 16:3; 16:9 niv.) Unfortunately, many churches carry out their services according to their own agendas. Some even plan activities two or three years in advance without allowing any room for whatever the Holy Spirit might want to do. This is one reason we see such powerlessness within the church. 

Eloquence replaces the demonstration of power. 

Many preachers fail to impart transformation to the hearts of people because they leave out the most important ingredient: the power of God. People run after personality-driven churches that are built on human charisma, talents, and gifts instead of on the name of Jesus. 

Administrators replace apostles and prophets. 

Apostles and prophets bring the revelation and power that create breakthrough within the church. They are empowered by God with the anointing for spiritual warfare. When we substitute administrators for apostles and prophets, we essentially take much of God’s power away from the church. 

Reason, logic, and a carnal mind replace living by faith. 

When we handle divine situations with a carnal mind, we limit God and lose hold of the supernatural. Faith gives us the ability to believe above human reason because it supersedes all reasoning. Many of the things the Lord did in the Bible did not make sense to those who witnessed them. 

Motivational preaching replaces the message of the cross. 

Motivational preaching is good because it inspires people, but when it is done without Jesus Christ as its central figure, it has no power to change hearts. To eliminate or hide Jesus within a message so as not to offend is the same as nullifying the power He activated with His death and resurrection.

Rigid laws, norms, and regulations replace love. 

Many churches are more concerned with people keeping the traditions, norms, rules, and regulations of the council or denomination than offering the genuine love of Christ to the lost. Love is the only thing that can loosen God’s power. 

Entertainment replaces power. 

Many believers attend church in search of entertainment, and many leaders use entertainment as a means of keeping membership numbers high without fully establishing anyone in the power of God. This is another reason why so many of God’s people do not experience the supernatural in their lives. When we entertain people, we have lost the power. 

Human ability replaces God’s grace. 

Grace is the divine ability given by God for His people to become everything He has called us to be and to achieve that which we are unable to do in our own strength. There are men and women of God who have a supernatural ministry, but their character fails to measure up. As a result, other people reject them and thereby reject the supernatural. This is when God’s grace intervenes—when we are unable to achieve things in our own strength. Christ was the only perfect Man, and His life was a manifestation of God’s supernatural power. He maintained a balance between His power and His character. If He was able to do it, then we should also be able to do it—with His grace, of course. He who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. (John 14:12) 

Traditions replace the Word. 

You…[make] the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down.(Mark 7:13) In some Christian circles, it is common to hear preaching that is based on traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation. The leaders in these churches fail to realize that their method of preaching nullifies the effect of the Word of God. The fact that many of these churches are part of a long-standing tradition does not necessarily mean the tradition comes from God. In fact, if a tradition fails to produce new life or transform people’s lives, it is probably not of God. Tradition is not a substitute for the Word and the Holy Spirit, which are the only things that can truly change lives. 

Once we become aware of all the things that many churches substitute for the power of God, we begin to recognize why so many in the church lack power, as this is why miracles, healings, and salvations occur so rarely. 

If you are operating under any of the aforementioned substitutes, repent and return to God in order to manifest His supernatural power to this generation. 

The following prayer will help you achieve that: 

My Lord Jesus, I repent of replacing Your power with human substitutions. I ask You to fill me once more with Your supernatural power, which I need to carry out Your purpose here on earth. 

Ask the Lord to fill you with His power right now!

Balancing Supernatural Power Power and character 

In many congregations, there is a negative attitude toward anything that borders on the supernatural, whether in the church or the world. Some people look at their flawed leaders and say, “I don’t believe in miracles, in healing, or in the power of God because the man who performs such miracles has terrible character.” Although character is not a requirement for obtaining a gift, it is important in pursuing holiness and honoring the Giver of the gift and His gospel. If we say, “You have the supernatural but lack character,” we might say to someone else, “You have character, but where are the miracles?” Jesus, with His holy character, manifested miracles everywhere He went. However, in Scripture, we also find men who lacked character, had supernatural ability, and were greatly used by God. For instance, regardless of how he ended his life, Samson is still counted as one of the heroes of the faith. (See Judges 13–16.) Our character should be formed so that it is able to match the level of power we receive. Only then will we find balance and success. 

Therefore, it is important to have a mentor—a spiritual mother or father—who can equip and train you in God’s supernatural power and also help you to shape and maintain your character. 

On the other hand, if we give character more emphasis than power, we turn the gifts of the Holy Spirit into a reward. In other words, they are no longer gifts but rewards or blessings for good behavior. As a man committed to demonstrating the character and power of God, I cannot say that one is less important than the other, but it is a mistake to think that we can be more effective if we dedicate time and effort to shaping our character while setting aside the manifestation of power. 

Power and authority 

As we’ve said, the Greek word dynamis means “strength, power, ability,” while the Greek word exousia means “the power of authority (influence) and of right (privilege)…jurisdiction.” Behold, I give you the authority [exousia]….(Luke 10:19) When a person has dynamis (power) but lacks exousia (authority), he may find himself in a grave situation because of this imbalance. The duration of supernatural power is directly proportional to the level of authority in which a person operates. If you do not honor authority, you might be able to perform miracles, signs, and wonders, but your lack of submission and surrender will begin to manifest in diminished results because the power will expose flaws in the flesh. When I traveled as an evangelist, I met a pastor in another country who had a church with thousands of members. God was powerfully using him to perform miracles, signs, and wonders, but he did not submit to authority and refused all words of counsel. Eventually, at a time when his church was extremely effective, it was discovered that he was involved in an adulterous affair with a woman from his leadership team. In time, other sinful activities were also discovered in his life. Because of his sin, his ministry was eventually destroyed. Sadly, this is a clear example of what can happen when there is an imbalance of power and authority in your life.

Authority is the ability to exercise the power that leads to Godlike behavior.

Word and Spirit 

For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.(1 John 5:7)

When we preach and teach God’s Word, we must always wait for the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. I devote time during each service to teach from God’s Word and to minister what the Holy Spirit has for His people. This demonstrates the power of the preached Word. An imbalance occurs when people focus only on the Word and never allow the Holy Spirit to move freely, or when they focus only on manifestations of power and neglect the priority of the Word. But if we keep these two—the Word and the Spirit—in balance, we will experience the full blessings of God. 

It is possible to have an experience and to be deceived, but not having an experience is already a deception.

Power and harvest 

We must understand the relationship between revival and harvest. I define revival as “receiving the power to go and gather the harvest of souls.” If we fail to gather the harvest, our revival experience has been in vain. You are chosen, equipped, and anointed to go throughout the world in search of souls and to perform miracles, signs, and wonders. Many people stop for an “upper room experience” (see Acts 2:1–4) and never get around to gathering the harvest, even as people all around them remain ignorant of the gospel and bound for an eternity in hell. We can fill ourselves with power yet remain seated on our church pews, doing nothing. When this happens, we grow cold toward the things of God. But He has anointed us to gather the harvest and not to remain benchwarmers. 

Words and actions 

Jesus of Nazareth…was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people.(Luke 24:19) The complete power of the kingdom can manifest only when words and actions are aligned. Jesus operated in words and actions. 

"The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach…." (Acts 1:1) God’s Word always shows Jesus… Doing, Teaching.

Without faith, the kingdom will not have maximum impact. 

"Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves." (John 14:11)

Theology without works is a dead science. 

The multitudes followed Jesus not because they wanted to join a church but to hear about His kingdom and to see the wonders and miracles He performed. 

After demonstrating the power, Jesus presented the kingdom. This concept appears over and over again throughout the Gospels. This has also happened to me in countries where people are reluctant to accept the gospel. Often, the only way to soften their hearts is to demonstrate God’s power. After praying for the sick, I demonstrate the power with a person who is missing a bone, has a cyst, or is blind or deaf—someone in desperate need of a physical healing miracle. After people witness the miracle, they are sensitized and ready for the calling of salvation. They are eager to answer the call, walk to the altar, and receive their salvation.

There are two things we should avoid in our relationship with the Holy Spirit if we want to achieve balance in our character: 

Grieving the Holy Spirit and quenching Him. 

"Do not grieve the Holy Spirit. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Ephesians 4:30) 

In Greek, the word for “grieve” is lypeo, which means “to make sorrowful, to affect with sadness, cause grief, to throw into sorrow…offend.” 

How do we grieve the Holy Spirit? 

We do so by having bad or evil attitudes, thoughts, or actions, and by having angry outbursts, slanderous conversations, and bitter quarrels. 

We also grieve the Holy Spirit when we deliberately participate in sinful activities. When we live in anger, wrath, and deception, we impede the Holy Spirit from flowing through us. Therefore, we grieve Him. 

Do not quench the Holy Spirit. 

“Do not quench the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19). 

What does it mean to quench the Holy Spirit?

In Greek, the word for “quench” is sbennymi, meaning “to extinguish…of fire or things on fire…to suppress, stifle.” It also implies the idea of obstructing the flow of something—to drown out, kill, or block the source. 

Jesus said, “He who believes in Me…out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). He did not talk of drops of water or a trickle of water but “rivers.” 

To quench the Holy Spirit is to cut off His flow and dry up the spring. It is like crimping a hose of running water to stop the flow. When we experience anger, bitterness, slander, and other sins in our lives, we are blocking the Holy Spirit from flowing through us. In doing so, we essentially quench His power. 

At our church, the services occasionally take longer than expected. This happens because the Holy Spirit of God is moving—healing, delivering, and saving those who desperately need it. However, when I have been forced to cut services short for one reason or another, I immediately realize that I have quenched the flow of the Holy Spirit, which then stops the power of God from operating at that particular moment. 

Jesus modeled how we should live with the Holy Spirit without grieving or quenching Him. There was time when I did not understand why many pastors who love God and His people fail to experience the power of God in their lives or their churches. Although they may have not quenched the Spirit in their personal lives, I now realize that they did so in their ministries by denying the Holy Spirit the freedom to use them to prophesy, to move in His gifts, to pray for the sick, or even to dance under His control. 

Each time the Holy Spirit of God inspires them to do so, they suppress or stifle Him. Again, this is often the reason their churches lack power. I had to repent before God for the many times I quenched and suppressed the Holy Spirit of God when I denied Him the freedom to flow as He wills. 

As Christians, we should daily strive not to grieve or quench the Spirit in order to maintain a good relationship with the Holy Spirit. Grieving the Holy Spirit deals with our character; quenching the Holy Spirit deals with power. Let me give you an example of this. On one occasion, an evangelist in our church was on his way to Florida International University when God gave him a vision of students wearing red shirts. As he entered the university’s library, he saw a student wearing a red shirt leaving the premises. He immediately walked over to him and began to tell him about Jesus. In response, the young man kept repeating that he was an atheist. Then, he asked the evangelist how he was so certain which god was the true God since Allah, Buddha, and Jesus all easily fit the description of a god. The evangelist simply replied, “You have experienced moments of great risk in which you were in danger of losing your life, but you have not died, because of God’s infinite mercy.” The young man could not understand everything he was hearing, but he admitted that these words were true. “I have seen many people die in the Iraq war,” he said, “but I have escaped death. I have often wondered why I was spared.” At that moment, the power of God came upon him, and his legs began to shake. He asked the evangelist, “How did you know this?” The evangelist answered, “Well, you asked me how I know who the true God is, and now I say to you that the One who revealed this to me was not Allah or Buddha, but Jesus—the only true God!” The young man immediately said, “Now, I believe!” He instantly received Jesus as his only Lord and Savior. 

A ministry that performs miracles but fails to gather the harvest of souls is not fulfilling the complete will of God. Power without balance can destroy the user along with those around him. However, if power is used with wisdom and balance, it can impact thousands of lives in positive ways, glorify God, and, above all, result in a great harvest of souls. 

Summary

The revelation of the kingdom produces a structure—order, vision, and purpose—that prepares us to receive the power. 

Supernatural power is the explosive, dynamic, and intrinsic ability of God to do anything. 

The substitutes of power we must avoid are: 

1. uninspired theology; 

2. intellectual education; 

3. psychology and psychiatry; 

4. man-made programs; 

5. eloquence; 

6. administrators; 

7. reason, logic, and a carnal mind; 

8. motivational preaching; 

9. rigid laws, norms, and regulations; 

10. entertainment; 

11. human ability; 

12. and traditions. 

Power is balanced by character, authority, the Word and the Spirit, the harvest, and words combined with actions.

How to walk in the supernatural power of God

(This is one of the best books I have come across on this subject)

An extract from the book: "How to walk in the supernatural power of God" by Maldonado Guillermo

When we contemplate the greatness of God’s creation, our finite imaginations cannot fathom His great power and love. Man has tried to know his Creator through intellectual means, but this has proven impossible because God can be known only through revelation. 

His intention was never to remain a mystery to His people. In fact, He has always desired for us to know Him intimately and to experience His attributes, strengths, and virtues. To reveal Himself as the supernatural and all-powerful God, He sent us His Holy Spirit. There is no other means by which we can know Him. God cannot be defined because no person has the mental ability to describe the infinite or the eternal.

The only way to know God is through revelation, but what is revelation? In Greek, the word for “revelation” is apokalypsis, which means “laying bare, making naked…a disclosure of truth, instruction concerning things before unknown.” 

This expression is particularly used in understanding the spiritual realm.

 Revelation 

Revelation is the knowledge of God revealed to our spirits, and it is received by spiritually seeing, hearing, and perceiving. This process is referred to as “spiritual perception.” 

Revelation allows you to suddenly understand something without the aid of the natural senses. This knowledge or understanding can be given only by the Holy Spirit, as in the case of Peter, who received the revelation that Jesus was the Messiah because the Father had revealed it to him through the Holy Spirit. 

Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.(Matthew 16:17)

Revelation includes knowing things you otherwise would not know, seeing things that have yet to occur, and perceiving things without prior knowledge. It is the mind of God revealed so that mankind can exercise dominion over time, space, and matter. 

In Western culture, intellectual formation has overtaken divine revelation, pushing the latter into second-place status. Thus, we are trained to reject anything and everything that makes no sense or that cannot be explained according to human understanding.

Mankind criticizes everything he cannot create or understand. In the absence of progressive divine revelation, people tend to turn to formal, natural intellectual education, much of which serves to discredit faith. Intellectual knowledge has its rightful place in society, but it is a poor substitute for spiritual knowledge.

Who Is the Source of Revealed Knowledge? The Source of all revelation is the Holy Spirit. He is the only channel that gives us access to God’s revealed wisdom or knowledge. The Holy Spirit hears what is said in heaven and repeats it to men and women on earth. We cannot know God without the help of the Holy Spirit. 

Theologians may know that a superior being exists, but that does not mean that they know Him personally. Many of them merely operate with information acquired through intellectual research, reasoning, mental processes, or the experiences of others.

How Did the Apostle Paul Handle Natural Knowledge? 

"However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory." (1 Corinthians 2:6–7) 

Philosophy is a science based on a love of wisdom that is obtained from the natural environment. Therefore, when Paul mentioned “the wisdom of this age,” he was referring to prominent Greek philosophy—he had lived in Greece for two years. However, while in Athens, when Paul spoke on wisdom, he failed to effectively preach the gospel, and, after those two years, he had not planted a single church there. Upon his return to the church in Corinth, he emphatically expressed that he had returned in God’s power and not in human wisdom. Paul, then, understood that human wisdom and philosophy were incapable of producing the supernatural power required to preach the gospel or to manifest God’s power.

Four truths that can be known only through revelation: 

1. The nature of God 

2. The nature of man

3. The origin of man 

4. The origin of life

These truths cannot be fully discovered through scientific, natural, psychological, psychiatric, or philosophical means. If we choose to reject the concept of divine revelation, we will never fully understand these truths, and we will continue to live in confusion and deception. 

Scientists and avid students seek to use only mental processes and the systematic collection of information acquired through the natural senses. Within such limitations, they have no choice but to deny God because their workable knowledge does not allow them to accept Him. 

They often don’t know where their knowledge comes from and steadfastly believe that the world exists because matter somehow created itself. Sensory knowledge has become their primary source of wisdom, but this knowledge cannot explain the origin of creation or the beginning of matter, and it lacks valid answers to the great “whys” of humanity. 

Scientists have developed diverse theories on the origin of life and the nature of God. They have written countless volumes on the subject, all derived from the same restrictive sources that are supplied by human senses and reasoning, as well as the limitations of creatures that fail to acknowledge their Creator. 

Formal education has not contributed to the faith of millions of young people. They are raised and trained to recognize and accept only that which they can see, feel, decipher, and explain with their physical senses and intellect.

The only way to know God and to relate to His supernatural and invisible realm is by faith.

Many theologians and philosophers speculate about the nature of God. They seek to understand Him through logic but fail in their attempts. 

Plato tried to analyze God and concluded that He does not exist. 

Aristotle also concluded that God is not real. 

Many other scientists and theologians have reasoned the same, but this is because they failed to understand that God can be known and understood only by faith and revelation. 

God is always the One who chooses to reveal Himself to us, and the One who has provided the way. Thus, we must depend solely on Him. If God had not chosen to reveal Himself, we never would have known Him.

God’s Methods of Revelation 

God cannot reveal Himself to those who lack the desire to know Him, or to those who choose not to have a relationship with Him. For this reason, Jesus hid the mysteries of the kingdom from the religious leaders of His time and said, “Do not…cast your pearls before swine” (Matthew 7:6). Jesus spoke in parables precisely to keep certain mysteries hidden from those who had no intention of knowing God, and from those who sought such knowledge only as ammunition for debate rather than as an authentic experience.

God’s Revelation Depends On: 

1. God’s time 

2. God’s will 

Many believers, leaders, and godly men have no idea what God is saying or doing in their personal lives, in the body of Christ, or in the world precisely because they lack revelation. 

God said that in the last days, knowledge would increase (see Daniel 12:3–4) because it is His will to fill the earth with His glory (see Numbers 14:21). I believe that we are living in those last days, days in which the manifestation of His glory will be evident everywhere.

Your faith will be strongest in the area in which you have the greatest revealed knowledge from God. Likewise, your faith will be weakest where you lack revelation or have little of it.

The enemy establishes a stronghold where God’s knowledge and revelation do not exist.

What Are the Two Realms that Exist? 

1. The natural realm 

2. The supernatural realm 

What is the natural realm? It is the dimension that is subject to the laws of time, space, and matter, a dimension that can be accessed only through the physical senses. 

What is the supernatural realm? It is the dimension that operates above natural laws. It is the spiritual realm—permanent, invisible, and eternal—located outside of time. It exercises dominion over the natural realm. The spiritual realm can be accessed only by faith. 

"We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. " (2 Corinthians 4:18)

Enemies of the Supernatural God

1. Ignorance 

"Therefore my people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge."(Isaiah 5:13) 

The devil hates revealed knowledge because it leads to deliverance. When people discover the truth, they are delivered, but when they lack knowledge, they are held captive in their ignorance. 

2. Bad theology 

Theology is the study of God through the mind and reason. When we study God with improper motivation, or without inspiration, illumination, and revelation from the Holy Spirit, theology becomes carnal—of a worldly intellect that is influenced more by the desires of the flesh than by the Spirit. However, it is good to clarify that there is a good theology, one that studies God with revelation from the Holy Spirit.

We need theology, but only that which comes by revelation imparted by the Holy Spirit.

Common sense and human reasoning can never produce a miracle. 

Today’s generation does not know that it can go beyond medical diagnoses, beyond financial problems, and beyond all natural evidence. This is why believers must announce the Good News and tell people that Jesus lives and that He is powerful to do far more than what the human mind can fathom.

The Church of Human Ability 

The church today tends to operate on the basis of human abilities. If something doesn’t fall within the scope of what is considered “normal,” it is not to be believed. Consequently, nothing supernatural ever happens. The result is that people attend church without expecting to see anything extraordinary or supernatural take place. 

Why, then, do we even go to church? Would we go to our jobs if we didn’t expect to be paid? Would we go to a restaurant if we didn’t expect to eat? Why would we go to church if we don’t expect to witness miracles or experience some supernatural event—a healing, a new song, a new sign, or a miracle? 

If none of these occurs in the church, something is not right. Why does the church not expect anything supernatural to take place? Because it doesn’t know how to bring the supernatural into the services. It lacks a revelation of the supernatural, eternal, and all-powerful God. 

Humanism has robbed us of this expectancy. Many leaders and ministers have become stagnant and irrelevant, failing to generate any change or effect an impact within their nations or churches. The time has come to retake the path set by the early church and return once again to the revelation of the living Christ, raised, all-powerful, and supernatural. 

Summary 

God is a spiritual being with supernatural abilities. 

He lives in eternity but manifests His presence in our physical dimension. 

Revelation is the revealed knowledge of God that comes directly into our spirits in an instant, without prior knowledge or research. 

The Holy Spirit is the only Source of revelation we need to know God. 

All the mysteries of wisdom are hidden in Jesus and are available to the humble who hunger to know God intimately. 

The four things that can be known only through revelation are: 1. God’s nature, 2. human nature, 3. the origin of man, and 4. the origin of life. 

The two sources of supernatural power are God and Satan.

Im sitting here in Sydney on holiday thinking about how amazing God is. Luke has been assigned to share a house with 7 other fellow students all studying at Hillsong College. I received a call from my cousin whom I have not seen for about 10 years. He runs a bakery in Sydney and named his youngest son after my Dad. It so turns out that his house is 1km away from where Luke will be staying. His son Ben regularly walks to the Ice-rink owned by Hillsong adjacent to the church. Hillsong hire many homes around the area, but it amazes me that Luke gets assigned to this particular house. It gives Riana and much peace of mind knowing that family is nearby if Luke needs anything.

Our time here in Sydney has been such an enjoyable experience. We have been so welcomed by other South African families who have never met us, yet have invited us to their homes and put on a huge braai with boerewors from the local South African butcher in St Ives.

Friends whom I have known since primary school, living here have had us over for supper and it has been a joyous reunion.

This city is very efficient, well organised, safe, clean and a pleasure to be in. I find the Australian people very laid back and friendly, helpful and have been amazed at the general honest behavior. There have been occasions when I paid for things and gave too much money, or offered to tip a taxi driver. The attendants would hand back the extra money and smiling and say this is too much. The taxi driver refused to take a tip saying I have paid enough.

My boys comment how amazing it is to stop at a traffic light and not be accosted by people begging or selling things. We only once have seen a homeless person in town and we have not seen a single beggar so far.

Traveling on the trains is a pleasure. People are well behaved, friendly and polite. The trains are on time, clean and easy to use. They are safe, my boys travel to gym on their own with "no worries mate".

The political landscape is so civilized compared with the circus of corruption and foolhardy nonsense that goes on in SA. The newspapers are actually readable with out being dominated by crime and corruption.

The economy is strong, there is an abundance of jobs. Anyone willing to work will find it. Luke, straight out of school, a foreigner with a student visa, allowed to work 20hrs per week has already got several job opportunities. A South African who lives here, friends of the owner of the house where we are staying phoned to offer Luke a part time job.

One gets a sense of feeling, phew, I didnt know that one could relax like this, not stressing that when you park your car somewhere, you cant leave anything in sight incase the window is smashed and items stolen. You can go on the trains not feeling threatened at all. One can walk around town feeling relaxed. People go to the beach and leave their things whilst swimming without worrying that they will be stolen. You dont have to sit in a restaurant and hide your wallet and attach your bag to the leg of the chair in case someone grabs it as they pass by.

I lament for South Africa, especially when I read about Zuma sacrificing a bull to the ancestors, or listening to Malema's rants, or looking at accident deaths on the roads, or think about how the infrastructure of the country is deteriorating, or how tenderpreneurs who have struggle credentials get awarded massive tenders, the corruption, BEE, quotas for university entrance. South Africa has become very hostile for white people, especially youngsters trying to get established in life.

It is a fact that no earthly country or government is perfect, we are pilgrims on this earth, we all have a special assignment from God and we need to find out what this is and follow it. Personally, I believe that one of the ways I can contribute back to our beautiful country and nation is to assist with improving education. I believe that this is my mission and is the primary focus of Umoya Networks. It is this passion that will keep me in South Africa, it helps me look above the noise, the poverty, the violence, the corruption, the crime. I believe that when people are properly educated, they will make wise choices. I believe that when the Gospel of Jesus Christ is presented without religion, but in the power of the Holy Spirit with the demonstration of signs and wonders, people will take it seriously and see Jesus for who He really is. For the most part, religion, churches and even Christians have not done this and as a consequence many would be believers have been turned away. It is time for the true body of Christ to rise up and make a difference. To declare the Word of God in power, to expose false religion and dead religious activities and show people that this is not what God intended, we must demonstrate in love, the power and the truth of the Gospel.