Be Monopolized!

Luke 11:13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

D.L. Moody has been influential in many lives.  One story about how D.L. Moody was preparing to lead a revival throughout England to which an elderly pastor protested and said, “Why do we need this ‘Mr. Moody’? He’s uneducated, inexperienced, etc. Who does he think he is anyway? Does he think he has a monopoly on the Holy Spirit?”  A younger, yet wiser pastor stood up and responded, “No, but the Holy Spirit has a monopoly on Mr. Moody.”

Do you truly want to be monopolized by the Holy Spirit? Let’s face it — the degree of fullness of the Spirit of God is in direct proportion to the intensity of our true desire. The reality of the spirit-filled life is — we have as much of God as we truly want.  Let’s seek to have a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him. Let’s allow the Holy Spirit to monopolize our lives and in doing so — we’ll be empowered to do the great things God has called us to do in these days!

Have An Undivided Heart

1 Chronicles 12:33 Of Zebulun, there were 50,000 who went out in the army, who could draw up in battle formation with all kinds of weapons of war and helped David with an undivided heart.

Colossians 3:23-25 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

50,000 soldiers from the tribe of Zebulun served in David’s army with UNDIVIDED (some translations: “not double-hearted”) hearts. Can you imagine a skilled army with this level of loyalty and devotion?

An undivided heart is one of the most powerful things on earth. Singleness of purpose will flow from the life of a person whose heart is undivided. Couples whose hearts are devoted to the Lord this way will preserve their marriages, no matter how difficult their issues and problems become. Intercessors whose hearts are filled with a single purpose will ultimately demolish terrible strongholds. Missionaries with vision and absolute loyalty, will be able to take entire nations for Christ. One woman will pour out ointment worth a year’s salary on her savior’s head. An undivided heart is one of the most powerful things on earth.

Yeshua (Jesus) inspires and empowers undivided hearts. If you really know him well, you will be very much like the men of Zebulun were in their loyalty toward David.

Check your heart. Is it inspired by the beauty, heroism, and love of the Messiah? If not, you just don't know him well enough.

A Gift too Wonderful for Words

By Rob McCarthy, ITL

Jesus did not have to do what He did on the cross. At any time, He could have walked away from it all. For even the very night before His death, as He was being taken by the temple guards, He told the disciples, “Do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelvelegions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53) Jesus went to the cross bychoice for us, and out of obedience to His Father.

This clearly reveals the heart of God for mankind. Before the foundation of the world (Revelations 3:18) He decided to “step up to the plate” for us. Thebible says, “He made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) And again, “ButChrist has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. WhenHe was hung on the cross, He took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’ Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing He promisedto Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:13-15)

In essence, God said to mankind, “Let these go their way into the blessingsI have for them while I pay the price for their mistakes by taking the curse they should receive.” After falling hopelessly into sin through Adam, mankind needed someone to stand in the gap. No natural-born person has been or ever will be qualified because sin is in all of us. As Ezekiel 22:30 says, “So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one…”

But the good news is that Jesus came, born not of human will, but of God’s will. He said, “Sacrifice  and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me.” (Hebrews 10:5-6) He willingly took the place of penalty for us, offering that body as a living sacrifice for all of our sins on the cross. And “by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:14)

Because of what the Lord accomplished on Calvary, we, as believers, can now expect to see, “God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” (Ephesians 3:20-21) We no longer have to wonder if God is out to get us, but instead we can trust in His promise to us. We can be confident that the words spoken to the prophet Jeremiah also apply to us: “‘I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me  wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you,’ says the  Lord.” (Jeremiah 29:11-14)

In the words of the Apostle Paul, “Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words.”