The Friend of God
The friend of God! Such a distinction is clearly considered one of man’s greatest honors. Even so, that opportunity is granted to those who abide in Christ and His Word abides in them. The time has now arrived for the friends of Christ to begin to restore what has been stolen from the church. This will involve many areas of recovery involving our lost heritages.
Return to the stronghold, O prisoners who have the hope; this very day I am declaring that I will restore double to you. For I will bend Judah as My bow, I will fill the bow with Ephraim. And I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece; and I will make you like a warrior’s sword. – Zechariah 9:12 13
The Lord is even going to begin to restore past relationships that our enemy has destroyed, delayed or neutralized. Relationships destroyed by rumors, gossip, and internal wounding will be supernaturally mended by the Lord during this season of the Spirit. I have experienced this myself in recent months as the Lord has wonderfully restored friendships with many that I love very much.
The Restorer of the breach will recondition us with the Spirit of Truth and a new wall of protection will be constructed to surround the true church. Plumb-line revelation of God’s word is about to be established with clarity and power. It is around that Message of Truth that many will rally with divine alliances and unity that transcends present understanding.
The Lord is the restorer of the breach and the repairer of the broken walls…He is the restorer of former streets and dwellings and the One who un-stops old wells.
Truth Revealed
The prophet Daniel recognized this generation and described it as the “time of the end,” in which knowledge will increase and great mysteries of the Kingdom will be revealed. Many believers are entreating the Lord to show great and mighty (hidden and set apart) things we presently do not know. The prophet Jeremiah was given the following promise when he spoke on behalf of the Lord:
Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know. – Jeremiah 33:3
If we are instructed to earnestly call upon the Lord, then its clear implication is that we will be endowed with the ability to hear from Him with precision and clarity! In this way, we will understand the articulation of prominent and awesome things that we presently do not know. It will be the unveiling of divine truth and the blueprint of Heaven for our time.
Our Source of Truth
In our quest to understand truth, we can turn to only one source as our absolute standard by which all truth is weighed—the Word of God. The revealed truth—gleaned from the merger of the Word and the Spirit—provides all that we need in this life and the one to come. Through redemption, the covenant promises and blessings are made available to us, as well as the unveiling of the nature and character of God.
The Scriptures and the spiritual impartation they convey are the only pattern by which we may know with certainty the events and directions of the future. They are the only source that satisfactorily answers the questions: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
As someone once said: “Time can take nothing from the Bible. It is the living monitor. Like the sun, it is the same in its life and influence to humanity this day as it was years ago. It can meet every present inquiry and console every present loss.”
Resident within the heart of spirit-filled believers should inherently be a great love for the Scriptures and for the truth they convey. It is the sword that separates spirit from soul—light from darkness. Although we are eternally grateful for the understanding we now have, deep wells of spiritual insight, mysteries, and truth remain to be discovered.
Vast Oceans of Truth
Perhaps many today can understand Sir Isaac Newton’s perceptions when he wrote:
“I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”
An ocean of divine truth exists before us to be discovered by those anointed with the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation. Ephesians 1:17-18 emphasizes the right of every believer to be anointed with the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation. This wisdom is not merely the ability to mentally analyze a situation and make a good response. Rather, it is a spiritual endowment that allows a believer to explore deep into the heart of the Father, to perceive and understand the mysteries of the Kingdom and one’s rights purchased through Christ’s redemption.
Not only do we have the liberty to understand vast spiritual mysteries, but also the accompanying Spirit of Revelation to give illumination and comprehension of their reality.
By them we may know:
- What is the hope of His calling . . .
- What are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints . . .
- What is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe . . .
– Ephesians 1:18-19
But there must be an anointing resting upon our spiritual eyes that we may see and our ears that we may hear—anointed eyes and ears. Presently we have a very limited understanding of the rich deposit of truth inherent in the Scriptures. Part of our mandate during this time in history is to unfold and demonstrate great redemptive truths as part of the hidden manna set apart and reserved for the end-time generation. Those with spiritual comprehension will have great insight and shine brilliantly in this dark age.
Spiritual Thoughts and Spiritual Words
Through The Church, The Holy Spirit is beginning to unveil the mysteries of the Kingdom by articulating and giving expression to spiritual thoughts with spiritual words (1 Corinthians 2:13). It will be Kingdom truth not taught by human wisdom, but the Holy Spirit granting the proper interpretation of spiritual truth through spiritual language. If we choose a receptive posture in this process, we will begin to understand His ways and apprehend His thoughts. The Lord is promising to reveal His thoughts and ways, which are much higher than ours, if we will only follow his prescription for a “higher way” of holiness.
Words, when anointed, become a spiritual vehicle that transports us from one realm to another; or, put another way, the natural word becomes spiritual through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. In John 6:63, Jesus stated the words He spoke to them were both Spirit and life:
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
Through the anointing of the Holy Spirit, words attain a spiritual life of their own. The Spirit gives life to the message of the Kingdom which points to the Cross and transports one from the natural into the Spirit realm. At that crossroad, we discover the hope of our calling and the immeasurable greatness of His unlimited power toward those who believe.
Jesus Himself was actually representative of the “anointed Word.” He was the Word of God incarnate and He is the Messiah, which translated means the Anointed One. His anointing is the fuel that propels the vehicle. Without the anointing, the vehicle cannot operate. The letter kills but the Spirit gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6).
For the ministered word to become spiritual food, it must proceed from the Lord’s Presence through an anointed ministry in an atmosphere of the anointing. As His anointed word is quickened within us and we receive from it an impartation of Spirit and life, we are then growing into His full stature.
Truth Springing Fourth From the Earth
Acquiring knowledge about the Bible is a noble pursuit. However, it cannot be a substitute for knowing Jesus intimately as the Living Word. He is Living Truth. A “word” is a “thought” that has been given expression. Inherent in God are His attributes and thoughts. God gave articulation to His thoughts and virtues through the Word (Logos). The “Word” then became flesh and dwelt among us so we could behold His glory and comprehend the perceptions and qualities of God. Truth sprang forth from the very heart of God in Word form, imparting Spirit and life that is tangible spiritual substance.
Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him that glory may dwell in our land. Lovingkindness and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth springs from the earth; and righteousness looks down from heaven. – Psalm 85:9-11
The Holy Spirit’s spotlight will be on Kingdom truths expressed in the above passage. The salvation here promised is not restricted to eternal life in our heavenly home, but includes deliverance of all kinds—rescue from trouble, distress, and calamity in this generation.
All who truly reverence Him and possess the fear of God rather that the fear of man may expect His impressive support and aid! God desires that the people called by His name possess the confident assurance that He will intervene in their troubles and deliver them.
It is the heart cry of all God’s children to see His glory abiding in the land. As the prophet David once wrote: “For Thy lovingkindness is before my eyes, and I have walked in Thy truth.” (Psalm 26:3). As we discover the fullness of the Spirit of Truth and walk faithfully, we will experience His promised inheritance set before our eyes. The Kingdom’s benefits—God’s glory loving-kindness, mercy righteousness, and peace—are produced by the Spirit of Truth. If we are going to be fruitful, we must be faithful to the Spirit of Truth.
Truth Exposes Deception
The Spirit of Truth will expose the spirit of deception. When this is accomplished, great conflict results between the two camps. Again, we are confronted in our choices by the testing of our motives and desires. If we embrace the correct commission, we will be catapulted to greater measures of loving kindness and righteousness, and we will experience heightened expressions of His glory.
Testing produces choices that we must make in righteousness as we choose each day whom we shall serve. We must especially pray for a guard to be placed before our tongues so that our words are spoken in agreement with Him. Our prayerful petition should continually be for awakened spiritual senses and a covering to be placed around our hearts so we will not embrace deceptions—only the Spirit of Truth.
All our words should be galvanized with charity. Even if words of correction are necessary, when galvanized with charity they will always be fruitful—love never fails.
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ. – Ephesians 4:14-15
If we do not cultivate a love for the truth, especially in the season ahead, we will be turned over to a spirit of delusion. The apostle Paul prophetically envisioned this day and wrote of it:
The one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false. – 2 Thessalonians 2:9-11
Unfortunately, many erroneous doctrines continue to be embraced in the Church, providing veils that separate us from the One we seek. A powerful release of the Spirit of Truth is coming to those of God’s people who are endowed with eyes to see and ears to hear. This visitation of truth is to guide us into all truth, dispelling the lies that have been taught as truth.