Knowing People by the Spirit

by Roberts Liardon

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. Some quotations are taken from the New King James Version of the Bible. Copyright 1 ! ,1 "#,1 "$, by %homas &elson 'nc., publishers. 1st (rinting

Knowing People by the Spirit

'SB& 1)" # ##)#!)

Copyright 1 by *oberts +iardon ,inistries. (.-. Bo. /#!1# +aguna 0ills, C1 $234 (ublished by 5mbassy (ublishing Co. (.-. Bo. /3## +aguna 0ills, C1 $234 (rinted in the United States of 1merica. 1ll rights reser6ed under 'nternational Copyright +aw. Contents and7or co6er may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without the e.press written consent of the (ublisher.

Contents
1 Life In The Spirit..............................................................5 2 Knowing People By The Spirit......................................11 3 Holding On To Divine el!tion"hip"............................1# $ Developing Spirit%!l &''o%nt!(ility.............................21 5 & )!ll To *!l+ In The Spirit........................................25

1 Life In The Spirit

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. *omans "81 9&:;< =ou can be born again and still li6e under condemnation. ,any Christians do. But notice the rest of our te.t says, "to them which walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." >e often quote the first part of the 6erse?"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus," and end it there, but the 6erse does continue. >e need to e.amine this last portion, because Christians will continually suffer from a sense of condemnation if they don@t learn to li6e in the realm of the Spirit. +i6ing in the Spirit realm is really 6ery simple. +ike :athryn :uhlman would say, it@s so easy, most people miss it. %he Aospel is so simple, it takes man to mess it up.

Walking In The Spirit Is A Decision

+ife in the Spirit is a decision. 't@s not Bust a feeling or a 6ision that comes, or something dramatic that happens to you, e6en though supernatural e.periences may happen in your life and ministry. 't@s a decision 5

Knowing People by the Spirit

about where and how you@re going to li6e your life. %here are times when you are making decisions, or you@re being hit by the enemy, that you may fluctuate a little in the realm of the Spirit, but you ne6er ha6e to come out of that arena. >e cannot engage in spiritual warfare unless we li6e in the Spirit. 'f we attempt warfare in the strength of our flesh, we@ll get worn out. Spiritual warfare should not wear you outC it should make you stronger and more ali6e. >e@6e got to learn how to pray through the leading and unction of the 0oly Spirit, and not by the flesh. 't@s got to be by the Spirit, in the Spirit and for the purposes of the 0oly Spirit. 'n the Sermon on the ,ount, ;esus said, "Blessed are they which do hun er and thirst after ri hteousness! for they shall be filled" 9,atthew 382<. 'f there is no hunger in you, there will be no filling inside of you.

Becoming Addicted To Heaven

=ou ha6e to become addicted to hea6en and to the things of AodD 1lcoholics drink and drink until their bodies acquire a taste, and e6entually a cra6ing, for alcohol. %hat@s the way we need to be concerning the realm of the Spirit of Aod. >e need to keep putting the things of the Aospel and the mo6e of the 0oly Spirit in us to where we can@t li6e without them in our life and ministry. Some people only like to ha6e 0ea6en about once a month. %he rest of the time, they say, "Let me do my ,

Life In The Spirit

thin the way " want to do it." 'f you@re doing this?if you@re running your life and ministry according to the flesh?you@ll e6entually wear yourself out. 'f you learn to run your life and ministry by the flow of the 0oly Spirit, you won@t get so tired. =ou@ll ha6e new strength.

Walk After The Spirit

%he Bible tells us to walk after the Spirit. 0ow do you walk "after" somethingE =ou make a decision to go after it. +ife in the Spirit is a choice to go after the things of Aod all the way, allowing nothing to hinder or distract you. =ou@6e got to want the mo6e of the Spirit in your churches bad enough to go after it. =ou cannot settle for soulish acti6ity. %here are sermons that are preached by the soul and there are sermons that are preached by the Spirit. =ou must make it your goal to preach by the unction of the 0oly Spirit. %here are songs sung in the natural and songs sung in the Spirit. Ao after those that come by the Spirit. *each out for them. 'f you don@t quite make it the first time, get back up and try again, Bust like a child learning to ride a bicycle. Fon@t gi6e up, because if you keep hungering and thirsting, you@ll get it.

A Holy Dissatisfaction
&e6er become satisfied with where you are in Aod. Become a person who has to ha6e more, more, moreD 't@s a part of your addiction8 you@re ne6er satisfied with what you@6e got. ' cra6e 0ea6enD ' cra6e the mo6e of the 0oly SpiritD #

Knowing People by the Spirit

'@m not happy if all ' preach is Bust a pleasant sermon. ' ha6e to feel the unction, the anointing. ' ha6e to know that what ' did was right according to 0ea6en. >e need to be deli6ered from preaching through human ability. =es, Aod will use our natural abilities, and that@s fine, but we shouldn@t depend on them. -ur dependency must be upon the 0oly Spirit. -ne of the greatest truths that comes out of the life of :athryn :uhlman, when you listen to her tapes or read her books is her total dependence upon the 0oly Spirit. She e.pressed it constantly, stating on all the stages she preached on, ""#m so dependent upon the $oly Spirit%" >e must become dependent upon the 0oly Spirit too. >e must get to the place where we don@t know how to function without the anointing of the 0oly Spirit. %he problem is, we ha6e learned the art of ministry without the mo6ing of the 0oly Spirit. >e@6e come to the point where there@s a whole generation that does not know the flow of the 0oly SpiritD >hen the flow of the 0oly Spirit comes and begins to work and manifest among them, they become ner6ous. %hey say, "&e ne'er saw it on this fashion before"?and they say it in a negati6e way, with no e.citement. >e ministers must preach sermons to our people about the mo6ing and the manifestation of the 0oly Spirit?so they will not be afraid of what they will see happening in front of them in the days to come.

Becoming Normal In Heaven s !yes

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Life In The Spirit

' thank Aod ' had my roots in the (entecostal mo6ement. >e had more (entecost in my home than we did in our church. >e had more prayer, more shouting, more praying for the sick and casting out de6ils in our front room than ' saw in many church ser6ices. &eighbors would come o6er for prayer. 56en though they were sinners, they knew where to come when their children were sick. >hen someone faced a di6orce or some other problem, guess who they would callE ,y mother and my grandmother. 1nd what did we doE >e prayed until we got the answerD -ften '@d come home from school and people would be laying on the front room floor. %his was normal for my family, so when ' began my ministry, ' thought, "('eryone does this." ' didn@t know that we were such a rare breed in the earth. >e@6e got to know what@s normal according to hea6en?not what@s normal according to the soulish or natural realm. %he standard of what is normal to hea6en is what we should cra6e and conform to. >alking in the Spirit is becoming like ;esus. >alking in the Spirit is not always yielding to the natural desires of the fleshC it is staying in that high realm, on that narrow road. But you@6e got to make a choice to stay there.

" #no$ing %eople By The Spirit

'n Corinthians 3812 we read8 "$enceforth know we no man after the flesh." 'f we don@t know people after the flesh, then how do we know themE >e@6e got to know them by the 0oly Spirit. %his is a big problem in the church today, especially among ministries, because you can 6iew people according to what you see in the natural, but that 6iew will not always bring accurate discernment. %hat 6iew may not pro6ide the true facts about that person. >hen ' was a little boy growing up in church, we@d ha6e great people come to preach, and '@d think, "Boy, if " could )ust et to meet them and shake their hand and talk with them, "#d be close to $ea'en%" =ears passed and my ministry grew to where ' was able to meet some of them. ' remember one case where ' was behind the scenes in a meeting, and this great man came. ' was so e.cited about meeting him. >e went out to eat. %hen he did something that burst my bubble. ' thought, G' can@t belie6e he did thatD 0e needs to go pray.G >hat he did wasn@t sin, and it wasn@t wrong, but it blew my image of him. ' had to go pray and get myself back together again. %he +ord took me to this 6erse. 0e said, G=ou can@t know people after the flesh. =ou ha6e to know them after the Spirit.G 0e asked, GFo you still belie6e that 11

Knowing People by the Spirit

man is anointedEG ' said, G>ell, ' ne6er doubted it. ' think he@s one of the greatest men in the world. '@6e read his books. '@6e gi6en to his ministry. '@ll always gi6e to his ministry.G G%hen what is your problemEG G+ord, ' know what he did wasn@t wrong, but my bubble burst. ' need some help to get myself back together.G G0as he helped youEG G0e@s helped me a lot.G G%hen what@s your problemEG G>ell, ' don@t know?but my bubble burstD 0eal me. Fo whate6er =ou need to do.G G=ou were shocked when you saw him in the natural,G the +ord responded, G>hat he was doing in the natural was different from the way you had seen him act before. 0e wasn@t wrong, but he wasn@t under the anointing then. =ou had only known him by the anointing, and when you saw him in the natural, you couldn@t handle it. 't short)circuited you. =ou@re going to ha6e to learn how to stay hooked up with people by the Spirit of Aod, and not allow the natural to affect you.G

Watch &'t (or Spirit'al Disconnections

,any people disconnect from ministries because they get close enough to see that the man of Aod puts his shoes on like e6eryone elseC he@s still human. >hen they see the human side of him, it short)circuits them. %hey don@t know how to handle it. 12

Knowing People By The Spirit

%his is a re6elation we all need to come toC we@re all human but anointed by Aod. >e all ha6e weaknesses. 1nd when you get close enough to someone, you@re going to see signs of those weaknesses. >hat you need to do is say, G%his person is still anointed, they@re still called of AodC thus, ' will not disconnect from them. ' will pray for them and ' will bless them.G %his is something we ha6e to learn right now in the Body of Christ. 'n the new millennium there will be many opportunities for people to disconnect from what Aod is doing and from those whom Aod is using in the earth. %his is why we must learn how to discern people by the Spirit. >hen people walk up to me and say certain things, ' ne6er immediately disregard them. ' don@t care what they look like?and some of them look 6ery dramaticD %heir hair may be sticking out in all directions, and they may be wearing biHarre clothing that looks like it came from the 1 /#s. But you ha6e to go beyond that and see them with the eye of the Spirit. 'f you study some of the people whom Aod has used mightily in the past, you won@t be so quick to cut people off. %hat person may be the ne.t great man or woman of Aod. Some of the greatest ministers in history had the most biHarre backgrounds. So look at people by the Spirit of Aod and become open to what the Spirit has to say about them. =ou may see all kinds of things, and you may hear all kinds of things about them in the natural, but what do you know by the Spirit of Aod down in your inner manE Be led by the Spirit, not by your suspicions. 13

Knowing People by the Spirit

=ou can know a ministry by the Spirit. =ou can know a situation by the Spirit. Be careful that the words or the opinions of men do not become stronger than the >ord of the +ord or what you sense by the Spirit.

Discerning A (alse )eport

' was in6ited to preach at a church one time when somebody called me and said, GFo you know what kind of church you@re about to go toEG G1s far as ' know it@s a good church.G ' said. G>ell, Brother *oberts, let me gi6e you the scoop.G %hey proceeded to list a host of problems. 1fter this person deposited his beguiling report, there began to arise in me a negati6e feeling toward this church. ' knew ' had to go pray. GIather, ' thought you told me to go to this church. >hat about these reports '@6e heardEG G' didn@t gi6e you that negati6e report,G 0e said, G' told you to go.G So ' went. >hen ' got there and began to preach, ' was looking around to see if what was said was true. But by the Spirit, ' couldn@t find anything wrong at all. 'n fact, we had a great meeting. (eople were sa6ed, we had a good prayer line and we had a lot of fun casting out de6ilsC it was wonderful. 1fter the meeting ' called this person back. GBrother,G ' said, Gyou@6e either been offended, or you@6e been misinformed. 5ither you@re mad or you@re Bealous. =ou need to deal with it.G 1$

Knowing People By The Spirit

0e got angry and ne6er talked to me again. '@m sharing these things with you because as we mo6e into the new millennium, Aod is going to begin to do some unusual things. ,inistries unlike any we ha6e seen before will come on the scene in a 6ery bold manner. >e must be sensiti6e to them by the Spirit of Aod. 'f we are not, we may disconnect oursel6es from a relationship or from a ministry gift that could help us accomplish what we@re called to do.

15

* Holding &n To Divine )elationships

=ou must ha6e enough humility to recei6e from people you may not like in the natural. :nowing someone by the Spirit will enable you to ha6e a great time with them, e6en though you may ha6e nothing in common with them in the natural. %hat doesn@t mean you abort your association with them, it means you hold onto your connection with them in the Spirit. =ou will ha6e many opportunities to lose your di6ine connections and appointments, but it is these 6ery relationships that will help you de6elop the kind of character you need to succeed in life and ministry. Areat ministers don@t fall because of their anointingsC they fall because they did not allow Aod to build strong character in them. (art of building strong character is ha6ing people around you who can see your blind spots and speak into them. >e all ha6e areas we can@t see, and those are usually where the de6il gains his entrance and infects other aspects of life, leading to a downfall. %here are people who belie6ed in my ministry when ' had no ministry. %hey prayed for something that no one else saw. =ou must hold fast to relationships like that. %hey are your spiritual founders. Fon@t lose them because they are the ones who belie6ed in you when you were nothing. %hey are the kinds of people that will look 1#

Knowing People by the Spirit

beyond your prestige and success and say things that will help you as a person.

A Divine )elationship A+orted

+et me gi6e you an illustration of this from history. >hen ;ohn 1le.ander Fowie came from 1ustralia to California, ,aria >oodworth)5tter was tra6eling as a pioneer (entecostal preacher. G,other 5tter,G as they called her, spoke in tongues and had the nine gifts of the Spirit e6en before the great 1Husa Street outpouring. >hen Fowie came to California, he began to hold meetings in a hotel room, and people started to get healed. 0is fame grew quickly here in 1merica. 1t about this time, he heard reports of a little woman named 5tter who was anointed of Aod to preach and perform miracles. Back then, women preachers didn@t ha6e much of a 6oice. But ,other 5tter was strong and unique in e6erything that she didC she was a real pioneer. 't was unusual for a woman (entecostal preacher to ha6e a 1$,### seat tent and tra6el around the countryC she had to be anointed to make it. 'n her meetings people would fall into trances. %his generation doesn@t know much about trances, but in her day it was normal. Sinners and saints would fall into a trance and their physical man would freeHe, while their spirit would be out mo6ing with Aod in the realm of the spirit. Aod would gi6e them a 6ision of 0ea6en or 0ell, or take them some place and show them something. 't happened in the Bible and it may happen again in your ministries at times. 91cts 1#81#< >hen someone falls into a trance, don@t get ner6ous, Bust act normal, because 1-

Holding On To i!ine "elationships

it is normal.

Heated ,onfrontations
So Fowie went to one of ,other 5tter@s meetings and sat in the back watching all the things that were happening. (eople were falling out, wailing and crying while she was upon the stage doing her thing. Fowie Bust couldn@t handle it. 1fterwards, Fowie began to blast 5tter from his pulpit. 0e accused her of operating under the influence of familiar spirits. >hen ,rs. 5tter heard about Fowie@s comments, she confronted him face to face. G=ou had better quit making fun of my meetings because what is happening is of the 0oly Ahost,G she warned. Fowie responded, G>ell ' don@t belie6e in all that falling down, or in those trances. ' think it@s a bunch of emotionalism.G G' don@t allow emotionalism in my meetings and ' guard against fanaticism,G ,rs. 5tter responded, Gbut ' will allow the 0oly Spirit to operate in my meetings.G Fowie and 5tter ne6er became friends. -ne reason Fowie made the mistakes he made later in life, if you look at it from a historical perspecti6e, was because their relationship had been aborted. Si. or se6en years before Fowie died, he made some 6ery negati6e declarations. 0e thought he was 5liBah and he built a city that Aod ne6er called him to build. ;esus ne6er said, GAo ye and build me cities.G 0e said, "*o into all the world and preach the ospel to e'ery creature." 9,ark 12813< Fowie built a city because he was tired of o6ercoming the 1.

Knowing People by the Spirit

opposition that Chicago ga6e him. 0e was trying to do something to counteract the persecution, as well as to help his ego. %he only person ' know about in history, that could look Fowie in the eyes and say, GFowie, you@re making a mistake,G was ,rs. 5tter. ' belie6e Aod had arranged for them to meet by di6ine appointment at that time in California so that they could ha6e a spiritual relationship that would benefit the both of them. ,rs. 5tter could ha6e learned how to ha6e stronger meetings through Fowie, because he packed them in by the thousands. %hey could ha6e learned a lot from each other. But the de6il saw fit to cause discord in their 6ery first meeting and split them. %he only person ' know that could ha6e spoke beyond Fowie@s anointing, fame and strength, was ,rs. 5tter. %hose around Fowie did not ha6e the strength or position in the realm of the spirit to speak into him. =ou ha6e to ha6e a ranking in the spirit to speak to some of these people. She had that ranking, she had that position, she had that anointing, she had that de6elopment of the Spirit to understand things beyond the natural. She could ha6e said to Fowie, you@re making a mistake here. But Fowie said, GShe will ne6er preach in my city.G >ell, after he died, she preached there. But they missed the relationship, they missed the connection because they could not o6ercome the natural and know each other by the Spirit.

2/

Developing Spirit'al Acco'nta+ility

(art of building strong character is maintaining relationships with people who can see your blind spots. =ou ha6e to acknowledge when someone is speaking by the Spirit and then let their words begin to work inside you. %here ha6e been things said to me that my flesh didn@t like. ' had to make my flesh walk in the fruits of the Spirit because it wanted to walk in anger. ,y emotions were saying, no, no, no, while something deep inside was saying, yes, yes, yesD %hat@s rightD *ecei6e itD %hese are the times you want to walk away from these people and ne6er speak to them again for the rest of your lifeD 'n order to know people by the spirit, you must learn to listen to people by the Spirit. =ou ha6e to know when Aod is trying to speak to you through them. %hey might not e6en know it, but an inner witness from Aod will stir within you. %his is part of being led by the Spirit.

Living &'t &f The Inner .an

'n *omans "814, (aul writes8 +or as many as are led by the Spirit of *od, they are the sons of *od. 'f you are truly led by the Spirit, you@ll be open to 21

Knowing People by the Spirit

hear what 0e has to say to you, no matter who it comes through. %his is part of spiritual accountability. =ou need people around you who can speak into your life by the Spirit and help you de6elop a strong inner man. =ou can@t li6e by the anointing, my friend. =ou ha6e to li6e out of the strength of your inner man. ' wish ' could get ministers to understand thisD Samson and ;oseph both carried great anointings, but ;oseph sur6i6ed and Samson did not. ;oseph sur6i6ed because he li6ed from the strength of his inner man. >hen (otiphar@s wife said, GCome and sleep with me,G ;oseph replied, G' will not,G and he ran from her. Samson, on the other hand, offered no inner resistance. >hen Felilah began to seduce him, he surrendered immediately and it led to his downfall. Both were anointed men of Aod, but ;oseph had allowed the dealings of Aod to de6elop inner character in him.

/od s ,all Is Witho't )epentance

%he gifts and call are irre6ocableC Aod will ne6er take them back. Fowie still carried an anointing to heal the sick during the last few years of his life when he thought he was 5liBah. 't@s amaHing how the anointing sticks with people. %hat anointing sticks and sticks and sticks. >hen you@6e got it, my brother and sister, you@6e got itD 1lthough it may wane or go dormant because of what you do in the natural, it@s still inside you. %he minute you get right with Aod, it comes to life again. ' once heard of a preacher who had a great healing anointing, but fell away from Aod. 0e was in a bar one night, half drunk, when someone had a heart attack. 22

e!eloping Spirit#al $%%o#ntability

%his backslidden preacher Bumped down from his bar stool, repented quickly, laid his hands on the person and got him healedD 1fter that, the backslidden preacher went back to drinkingD 't amaHes me how the anointing keeps working through people.

Living What 0o' %reach

>e ministers preach well, but li6ing what we preach is the problem. %hat@s why we need to get in prayer lines and ha6e other preachers pray for us while they are under the anointing. Sometimes we preachers need prayer to help with the problems in our natural li6es. 't@s not wrong for preachers to pray for one another. 't helps. But pride will sometimes keep preachers from recei6ing prayer, e6en when they are fighting a physical ailment. %here was a time when ' had problems with my Baws popping. ' would be sitting in meetings when a word of knowledge would come regarding Baws, but ' would Bust sit there, too embarrassed to go forward. ' knew there was an anointing present to heal my Baws, but ' struggled with the issue of prestige. ' thought, Gshould ' act like e6erything is fine, or should ' go up there and get healedEG ' finally said, Gforget this,G and ' went up and got healedD

Letting &thers %ray (or 0o'

>hen you@re in the anointing, it@s like you@re on a high. 56erything is great. =ou ha6e no problems. =ou@re ready to take on the world. But when the anointing lifts, you ha6e to return to reality. =ou ha6e to li6e from the 23

Knowing People by the Spirit

>ord and the strength of your inner man. (astors and ministers, there may come a time when someone in your church has an anointing to pray for you about a certain area. >hen it happens, you@6e got to acknowledge that it is from Aod and recei6e it. ' was holding some meetings in ,issouri once, and as the pastor and ' were heading for his office after the ser6ice, a lady came down the aisle and headed straight for me. ' could tell that she wasn@t interested in saying Ghello.G %he anointing was on her. 1s the ushers were about to turn her away, ' said, G0old itD She@s okayDG She marched right up, pointed her finger in my face, and laid a message in tongues on meD >hen she finished, she whirled around, marched back down the aisle, and left. She didn@t e6en gi6e me the interpretation. %he pastor said, GFo you want to lea6eEG ' said, G&o. %hat was Aod. '@m going to wait here until ' get the interpretation.G Suddenly, the pastor recei6ed a stirring and deli6ered the interpretation with the same intensity the woman had deli6ered the tongue. 't was the >ord of the +ord, and it was something ' needed to know. Aod was a little bit upset with me because ' had been going in the wrong direction. 0e said, GAet back o6er there where you belong.G %he pastor had no idea what he was saying, but ' sure didD Sometimes you say and do things you@re not aware of when you@re doing it by the Spirit. 2$

1 A ,all To Walk In The Spirit

' used to teach a lot on walking in the Spirit. -6er the past few years ' ha6e not done a lot of that, and the +ord said to me, G=ou@6e got to keep preaching on life in the Spirit.G -ur success in life and ministry depends on how we li6e our life in the Spirit. >e cannot war unless we li6e in the Spirit. >e cannot ha6e the right kind of relationships unless we li6e in the Spirit. >e cannot sur6i6e in the last days unless we li6e in the Spirit. ;esus said, ""n the last days it will be like it was in the days of ,oah." 9,at. $48/!< Aod told &oah to build an ark of safety. 't is a symbol of our sal6ationC it symboliHes our life in the Spirit. 1s the return of the +ord draws near, we need to be more aware of inward happenings than outward happenings. >hen something happens, we need to be able to turn inward and listen to what the 0oly Spirit is saying. >e need to be sensiti6e to 0im, appreciate 0im and draw upon 0im. >e need to let 0im be our friend. +ife in the Spirit is a continuous relationship with the %rinity?the Iather, the Son, and the 0oly Spirit. 't means we become %heir friend, talking to %hem, drawing upon %hem, and leaning upon %hem. >e can@t lean on our own understanding, because that aborts the flow of the 0oly Spirit. >e need to be reminded of these things, because sometimes we assume we@re doing them when we@re not. 25

Knowing People by the Spirit

>hen we realiHe our error, we can say, G' ha6e missed it here, +ord. '@m not as strong as ' used to be in this area. ' need to de6elop this again.G ,ost of you ha6e been led by the Spirit of Aod to accomplish what you ha6e done so far. But for you to continue to succeed, you must continue to be led by the Spirit. 1s (aul wrote to the Aalatians8 -re ye so foolish. ha'in be un in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh. 9Aalatians /8/< 1re you made perfect by the fleshE &o, you are made perfect by walking in the Spirit, doing the >ord, and making the decision to be more aware of the spirit world than the natural world you li6e in. =ou can walk in the natural, do what you ha6e to do, be normal and natural, and still be strong, alert and aware in the Spirit. ,ost ministers started their ministries by the Spirit. %hey started by prayer, intercession, preaching the bold, uncompromised >ord of Aod, and mo6ing in the gifts of the Spirit. 1ll these things helped build their ministries. 1re you still walking that wayE 1re you still willing to flow that wayE Arowth does not mean you discard the things that helped make you what you are. Arowth means you increase those things until you become stronger in them.

Are 0o' Still .oving With /od2

1s ministries grow and prestige and challenges come, ministers may be tempted not to mo6e like they did in the beginning days of their ministries. 2,

$ &all To 'al( In The Spirit

So ' would like to ask, GFo you still ha6e an altar call at your churchE Fo you still ha6e a prayer line at your churchE Fo you still mo6e in the gifts of the SpiritE Fo you still do the things you did beforeE G>ell, yes, *oberts.G %hen let me ask you another question8 %o what dimensionE (erhaps you mo6e in them once in a while, but is there a consistent flow of the gifts in your life and ministryE 's this flow growingE 's it becoming strongerE 'f not, return to your prayer closet and begin to cra6e and desire those spiritual things again 91 Cor 1481<. %ell the Iather, G' want these things in my life and ministry. ' repent of not stepping out in faith and desiring them more, 6oicing them more, and ministering with them more. '@m sorry, Iather, and from this day forth '@ll flow in them more.G %ell 0ea6en you are willing to flow with e6erything the >ord offers. Fon@t be picky o6er certain gifts. Fon@t say, G' like this gift better than that gift.G 'f you get too picky, my friend, you won@t get any of themD *ecei6e them all. *enew your commitment to flow again in the Spirit, only stronger this time. 'f you will do this, pastors, your church will go into shock o6er what happened to youD =ou will be on fire as you preach. =ou will be mo6ing in the gifts of the Spirit. >hen you get through, people will be shaking under the power and manifestations of the Spirit will be happening all o6er the sanctuary. %hat@s what we need today?a fresh mo6e of the 0oly SpiritD ,o6es of the 0oly Spirit are not always dramatic, but there can be dramatics when they come. 2#

Knowing People by the Spirit

Fon@t be afraid when something dramatic happens. Some people ha6e to ha6e dramatics all the time. ' like them myself. ,y attitude is, G=es, let it rollD +et@s goDG ' refuse to lose this attitude. (eople keep trying to tell me, G%hat@s because you@re young, *oberts.G But when ' get old, ' still want to be like thisD ' don@t want to lose it?' want to keep it?so don@t try to take it away from me. Juit trying to make me old and dried up. +et me be like Fr. +ester Sumrall, who was acti6e in ministry to the end of his life, going e6erywhere. %hat@s the way all belie6ers should be.

Hold &n To The Things (rom Heaven3

;ust because you@6e grown older, and you know more than when you started doesn@t mean you should stop mo6ing in the Spirit. 0old onto the things that are from 0ea6enD Fon@t let them go. (ray, GIather, ' want your spiritual gifts to grow and increase in my life.G Some of you husbands and wi6es once flowed in tongues and interpretation. 1re you still flowing like that, or do you think you@6e grown to a place where you don@t need to flow in the gifts anymoreE =ou must do what the 0oly Spirit wants. 0e may not require you to flow in the gifts all the time, but always be willing to flow. Some will argue, GBut *oberts, ' flowed in the Spirit, but ' came under attack, and ' got hurt.G =ou must get o6er that hurt and fear. *emember, ;esus came to heal the brokenhearted and those who 2-

$ &all To 'al( In The Spirit

ha6e been bruised 9+uke 481"<. 0e came to put you back together again so you can be stronger and continue your walk with 0im. 1 sign of Christian maturity is how quickly you o6ercome problems. Fon@t camp around those hurts. 'f it takes you si. months to a year to get o6er your hurts, you are in a GmaintenanceG type of ministry. =ou are going around in a little circle. %he thing that holds you in that circle?e6en though you desire to get out of it?is the fear that threatens, G'f you do this, such)and)such will happen, if you do that, this other terrible thing will happen. =ou must o6ercome those fears. Be like the apostle (aul. %he whole city of 5phesus was in an uproar and the people wanted to kill him, but (aul said, Glet me go preach to themDG 0e didn@t let their reBection bother him. 0e didn@t whimper and say, G%his whole city doesn@t like meD ' guess '@d better check to see if '@m really called to the ministry.G &o, (aul didn@t question his call. 0e said, G+et me at themDG %hat@s the way you need to be. Fon@t let your soul get offended. >atch what offends you, and if you sense an offense, take care of it and grow stronger in the Spirit. Some of you need to learn how to flow more accurately in the Spirit. =ou drift in and out of the Spirit while you@re ministering. =ou must learn how to stay in the Spirit. %his is why spiritual relationships and associations are important.

/et ,onnected3
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Knowing People by the Spirit

'f you will cry out to 0im, Aod will connect you with those who ha6e stability in their li6es and ministries. 0e will Boin you with people who ha6e de6eloped these attributes so you can learn how to de6elop them too. 't@s time to know people by the Spirit. 't@s time to discern those whom Aod has ordained for you to be connected with. 't@s time to quit walking in the flesh and return to a life of walking in the SpiritD

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