THE HUMBLING OF THE SOUL
…until Christ is formed in you… Galatians 4:19 NKJV
The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God through our regenerated spirits to make us incarnations of the resurrected Son of God. Our goal is not to imitate, but to become living and breathing embodiments, spirit, soul, and body, of Christ our Redeemer and Head. The Holy Spirit’s goal is that He, Christ, indwells us so fully that when people see us, they see Him when they hear us, they hear Him and when they are told of us, they are told of Him. Christ is to be formed in us…
…If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. John 14:23 NKJV
The Father and the Son through the Spirit dwell in the spirit of every born again one, making the transformation of spirit, soul, and body possible. The Word of God comes, empowered by the Spirit, to bring the soul, first into subjection, then into obedience, and finally into full cooperation with the Spirit’s leading. The barriers of sin and self are torn down, and the infrastructure necessary – the ‘form’ of Christ formed in you – for the full manifestation of the Spirit is put in place.
As the soul is transformed into Christ’s likeness, the empowering, healing, and strengthening of the body comes as well.
PRAYING FOR OURSELVES
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire…but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. Matthew 3:11-12 NKJV
The cleansing and empowering brought to the born again one by praying in the Spirit, speaking in tongues, is almost an untaught reality. But it is a reality! When you begin to pray in tongues, the Spirit begins to burn up the chaff, that which is worthless in your life, changing it and reducing it to mere ashes, while simultaneously building the power structure – the faith necessary, the understanding necessary, the wisdom necessary – of Christ within. Praying in tongues burns like a fire within the spirit and the soul. Can you pray in tongues throughout the day, even for hours? Yes, you can!
THE POWER OF THE WORD
Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. Psalms 119:11 NKJV
The purpose of reading the Word is not to make us religious, but to transform us into becoming incarnations of the Author. The Word brings us into such an intimate relationship with the Author, the Holy Spirit, that our confidence in Him becomes profound and life-changing.
You never know a man until you hear his words and see the fruit of his deeds. The true test of any husband is the fruit in his wife’s life. What has living with you for so many years brought forth in the one closest to you? The goal of Christ as our bridegroom is to make His bride not religious, but glorious!
THE HUMBLING OF THE SOUL
…casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:5 NKJV
Your love of truth is tested when God tells you that you are wrong. Pride is a wicked ‘best friend.’ Understand this…the barriers in your soul – whatever they may be – are the only things that are keeping you from walking as an incarnation of Christ. The person who loves you most is the one who lovingly shows you where you are wrong, and how to make it right. The humbling of the soul is the necessary passage from darkness to light, from condemnation to justification, from weakness to power, from sinner to saint.
Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. – Proverbs 27:6 NKJV
It’s hard to realize that you are wrong; it is a wound, but it is a blessed wounded-ness. It is a chance to stop hurting others, and start healing them, to stop making things worse and start making things better. It is the path to growth because we all must overcome sin and self, even the most ‘righteous and wonderful’ among us. The reproofs of instruction are the way of life…
Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. Proverbs 9:8-9 NKJV
All scripture is profitable for three things: doctrine, reproof, and correction. If we take each of those as proportional then two-thirds of the Word of God is reproof and correction. If all we ever preach is a doctrine, then we are out of balance. A case can be made that most of the Word of God is involved in showing us how we are wrong and how to make things right, which is the essence of reproof and correction. The goal is to make us glorious, to become an incarnation of Christ.
One of the great failings in the Church is that very few know how to give reproof and correction in love. This is because the fivefold ministries in the Church have not raised up fathers and mothers spiritually. In a healthy Church environment the ministries through the Spirit raise up fathers and mothers who give doctrine, reproof, and correction to the younger ones, and everyone is edified in love.
Our souls must say, “I want to be corrected, I want to be made right.” God will answer that prayer. The humbling of the soul will open the door to the incarnation of Christ!
Remember dear ones, we must be about our Father’s business…