THE
SECRET OF POWER WITH GOD
By
Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.
1. Through COMMUNION with God,
we are filled with the life of God. Without the life of God we are in
total spiritual darkness. The Bible says: "In Him was life; and
the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness and
the darkness comprehended it not.” (John 1: 4,5)
2. Through COMMUNION with God,
the Holy Spirit reveals the will of God. The Bible says: “Likewise
the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we
should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself maketh
intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Rom.
8: 26)
Often, we do not know how
to pray intelligently so are at a loss to know how to pray. But when
we pray in the Holy Spirit, He comes to our rescue and prays through
us to the Father. The literal Greek says, 'The Spirit Himself takes a
hold of against our infirmities and prays through us to the Father.'
This often happens when we pray in other tongues. The Holy Spirit
prays through us to the Father.
3. Through COMMUNION with God,
the Holy Spirit changes us into the image of God. The Bible says:
“And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the
pirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the
will of God. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn
among many brethren.” (Rom. 8: 27, 29)
“Now the Lord is that
Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we
all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are
changed in the same IMAGE from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit
of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3: 17,18)
4. Through COMMUNION with God,
we are led by the Spirit to go forth with the power of God. It was
the Holy Spirit that filled Jesus of Nazareth during His water
baptism in the Jordan River. Immediately thereafter, our Lord was led
by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
(Luke 4: 1-13)
IN THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT!
“And Jesus returned in
the Power of the Spirit into Galilee; and there went out a fame of
Him through all the region round about. And He came to Nazareth,
where He had been brought up: and as His custom was, He went into the
synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was
delivered unto Him the book of the prophet Esaias.
"And when He had
opened the book He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is
upon Me because He hath anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor,
He hath sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to
the captives, and recovering sight to the blind, to set at liberty
them that are bruised.” (Luke 4: 14-16).
St. Peter stated: “How God
anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with Power: Who
went about doing Good and healing all that were oppressed of the
Devil: for God was with Him.” (Acts 10: 38)
In His book titled Prayer,
James H. McConkey wrote, “Communion is the daily looking unto Jesus
for the continuous inflow of His divine life.” And that is the key
to power with God. It is the mystery that our Heavenly Father had
kept hidden for ages and generations but was given to St. Paul, who
revealed it to the Church.
Almighty God walked with
Enoch, He communed with Moses as face to face, He called Abraham His
friend and David was called a man after God's own heart, yet He did
not reveal the Mystery to them. And when Jesus walked with His
disciples and apostles, He did not disclose the Mystery to them,
either.
WHY
SAUL OF TARSUS?
He waited until He had the
right man in place, a man feared by the church and revered by the
enemies of the cross. Saul of Tarsus was a man God could trust, a man
deeply committed and so dedicated to the Jewish Laws that he would
put wrongdoers to death believing he was pleasing God.
Here was a man
who would obey God, once he heard the truth. Here was a man who would
carry the name of Jesus Christ and His Gospel to the Jews and who
would establish the church in the Gentile world.
St. Paul reveals the hidden
Mystery: “How that by revelation He made known unto me the Mystery;
as I wrote before in few words. Whereby, when ye read, ye may
understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ. Which in other ages
was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto
His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:
“That the Gentiles should be
fellow heirs, and of the same and partakers of His promise in Christ
by the gospel. And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the
mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God,
Who created all things by Jesus Christ.” (Eph.3: 3-6, 9)
What was this great MYSTERY
which our Heavenly Father had kept hidden from the beginning of the
world and was revealed to St. Paul? It was Christ living in the
believer, His body. His Church would consist of Born Again,
Spirit-filled Gentiles and Jews, making us into new creatures in
Christ.
“Even the mystery which hath
been hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made
manifest to His saints: to whom God would make known what is the
riches of His glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is
Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Col.1: 26, 27)
The Bible states: “And He
is the HEAD of the Body, the Church: Who is the beginning, the first
born from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence.
For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell. And
having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile
all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in
earth, or things in Heaven. (Col.1:18-20)
TO
BE LIKE JESUS!
How
is this possible? The Bible clearly gives us the process through
which this is possible: “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where
the Spirit is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding
as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same glory,
even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor.3:7,8)
James
H. McConkey writes: “You have heard the story of the sea and the
cloud. The sea looked up into the heavens and saw the beauty of the
great white summer clouds, and longed to become a cloud. So it
struggled, and strove, and tossed itself into the air, and dashed
itself against the rocks, but all to no purpose.
“And
then the sun looked down upon the sea, and said: “Be quiet; be
still; and just look unto me.” And then the tossing sea grew quiet,
and ceased its striving, and lay there with open face beholding the
glory of the sun. And as it did so, the sun steadily, moment by
moment, drew and changed, and transformed the sea, until bye and bye,
in the heavens was another cloud in all its beauty.
“What
the sea could not do with all its striving, the sun did, simply
through the sea's looking unto it. And so too we struggle and strive,
and work to be like JESUS, but somehow - we do not know how; we do
not understand anymore than we understand how as we look to Jesus in
the place of prayer; as we look unto Him in the place of communion;
as our souls cease their striving and their vain struggles to make
the old flesh life like Him – which can never be – and just look
helplessly, to Him, somehow we are changed into the image of the
Lord Jesus Christ.
“As
we look unto Jesus we come to look like Jesus. Those who wait upon
Him shine with His glory. When Moses came out of the mountain, his
face was shining with the glory of God. Why? Because he had gazed
into the face of God for forty days. And when he came down, he stood
a transfigured man before the people, with the image of God in his
face, so that he had to cover it, for they could not bear looking
upon it.
“How
beautiful then is it that as we look unto Jesus, we are transformed
into the image of Jesus. Then even down here in the dark night of
faith, somehow or other, we GROW like Him. The moment a man perfectly
sees Jesus, that moment a man is going to be perfectly like Jesus.”
WHEN JESUS RETURNS FOR US!
St.
Paul wrote: “Wherefore seeing we are also compassed about with so
great a a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the
sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the
race that is set before us.
“Looking
unto Jesus the author and finisher (perfecter) of our faith; Who for
the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the
shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
(Heb. 12: 1,2)
Let us
seek God to be filled with the blessed Holy Spirit and power.
Remember that Jesus had to pour out His BLOOD on the cross, so that
He could receive the promise of His Father to pour out the Holy
Spirit on His church!
That
Christ will return to take us all home is guaranteed. Jesus promised:
“In My Father's House are many mansions: if it were not so, I would
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to
prepare a place for you, I will COME again, and receive you unto
Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” (John 14: 2,3)
When
we see Jesus face to face we shall truly be like Him. How wonderful.
The Bible states: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth
not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall
APPEAR, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.” (1
John 3: 2)
“For
now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know
in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” (1 Cor.
13: 12); “And now little children, abide in Him; that when He shall
appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His
coming.” (1 John 2:28). Amen.
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