The journey unto spiritual intelligence is not one of grasping after it, as some might have us believe, or is it an approach someone would make to study a new or challenging subject in school; knowing that the more you grapple with the topic the more you will get or learn. I use the word grasping because in my mind pursuing spiritual intelligence, or anything pertaining to Gods kingdom, apart from Gods personal aspirations and providential intervention, whose kingdom it is, He occupies, and has so graciously called us to, through His Holy Spirit, in us, is like grasping after the proverbial straw, i.e., “to depend on something that is useless. Jesus in the gospel of Matthew warns the sheep of false prophets who are inwardly ravening wolves. One definition of ravening is “…excessively greedy and grasping”. We do not know Gods kingdom apart from His drawing us to it, in accordance with His will, and knowing its mysteries, on His terms and conditions, and not our personal religious suppositions.
Grasping, is an internal condition of heart that continues, though surreptitiously, religiously, after conversion; in one’s personal strengths, and or abilities of the soul in pursuit of God, and kingdom things, however, remaining disconnected, or disjointed from His will, and intentions in Christ, continuing in the mind of the flesh. “[That is] because the mind of the flesh [with its carnal thoughts and purposes] is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed it cannot”. God looks for and responds positively to what He sees of His Son in us. Knowing that our mind of flesh, no matter how religious, is hostile to God and His purposes in Christ, however, Gods objective is to work in us, His Sons life. His Son life, i.e., all He did and thought, His mind, those things that motivated Him, were according to Gods good pleasure, consequently Gods efforts toward us, and in us, is to move us from self-dependencies, sufficiency’s, to those of God intended, in Christ; that we might abide in Him. God looking from the heavens, He spoke, “And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”. There is only one mind and life God is pleased with, and that is His Sons. Even in all our religious activities, done in self, God is not pleased.
What the grasper does not realize is that God hides Himself, and His kingdom from the self-sufficient, self-assertive or aggressive Christian souls, and only reveals Himself, and His kingdom, in accordance with His own will, and intentions, and not that of any Christians miss guided ambitions.
“…But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it…”
“… yet the Lord has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day…”
“…Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man
the things which God has prepared…God has revealed them to us through His Spirit…”
Notice that God reveals His things to the heart, not the mind, nor reason, but at the seat of our spirit, our heart is the place these things are found. Found based upon those capabilities of spirit, perceptions, and what we hear, hear in our heart through His Spirit, in us. Receiving from God those things that no human eye or ear has heard, prior to the coming of the Holy Spirit. However, God now reveals His things through His Spirit, in those who have allowed Him to move them from self to spirit, and as God intended for us, His spiritual blessing in Christ, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ”.
Therefore, our focus and dependence must be upon God, our primary source of any knowledge and wisdom regarding His Son or kingdom. God is the one who opens our eyes, that we might perceive, and our ears, that we might understand, in other words, capabilities of spirit indicative of the Holy Spirit who renewed and excited these capabilities in His coming. However, it is in our spirit that we receive those things freely given to us from God, because the Holy Spirit is resident in our spirit, through the redemptive work of God in Christ. Consequently, we must set aside our dependency upon self and soul, possessing an inner condition of heart, one of self-denial; however, this condition is not realized by reading about it in a book, but is dependent upon Gods personal and providential work in us.
What is interesting to me is that we initially came to God repentant, weak, and needy; however, after conversion we are told we have everything in Christ, which is correct, however, we are taught to take it, grasp after it, by faith, for it is written, regardless of one’s heart or internal condition. Knowing saved by God grace, many, set aside Gods’ grace, dependent upon self to continue on, post salvation, to please God in terms of how we live and behave, apart from God working in us, by grace. Reading the text, and through a lot of self-effort attempting to obey, or please God, apart from His provision in Christ life meets without a lot of failure. Those who sought after the things of God for any length of time understand self-effort can be full of resistance, failure, and frustration. Consequently, some get so discouraged, laden with personal pain, failure and sin, will turn back, however, others get more self-righteous, aggressive and grasping, demanding, and religious, while some will again approach God penitent, weak and needy, seeking His way, in Christ. Many pastors will tell us to walk, to do, overcome, seek, however; they do not explain the mechanics in terms of God’s grace and provision, why, because they do not know by experience how. What the Church is in dire need of is a God given spiritual intelligence which does not solely come from much study and seeking. Study and seeking is a correct discipline, however, study and seeking is not wrong, but it is the seeker who is wrong, i.e., the seekers inward condition. God will give knowledge and understanding (intelligence) of His Son, and reveal the mysteries of His kingdom, when our inner man is right (good soil). The inner condition, God blesses and approves of is described in Matthew 5, poverty of spirit, mourners, pure in heart, meek, merciful, etc., the condition of heart that is solely dependent upon the goodness and grace of God, and not necessarily upon ones religious activities or personal merit.
God knows that His kingdom is the great treasure and if men could, if it were possible, would take the treasure and use it to their ruin. Consequently, God resist the grasping and inward condition of men that is full of various clandestine motives and impurities of heart that attempt to exploit Gods kingdom in accordance with their own purposes. However, Gods’ intent is that we obey Him, and walk in a manner that is worthy of the Lord, in other words, to walk as Jesus walked. In Johns first letter he explains maturity in terms of moving beyond self, unto an internal condition that is motivated exclusively by a love for God, a mark of one who is in Christ and has His maturity of heart
“…But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected (matured) in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked”.
Therefore, God continues to look upon our heart and inward condition of men, and blesses accordingly.
Jesus on the mount gave a sermon that speaks of the only inward condition of heart that is acceptable by God, one that He expeditiously works and will bless. The condition of the inner man God will reveal His kingdom; the spiritually poor- those who know the depth of poverty of their own spirit, apart from God. Those who mourn for Gods inner graces, those hungry and thirsty to be found in Christ and His righteousness, seekers of purity of heart, that they might see, know and commune with God, an inward condition that most of us have little to no understanding or experience. Why could Jesus teach others regarding this acceptable inward condition of heart, because this had been His inward condition? When we possess the same inward condition as outlined in Jesus sermon, we will know our God in the way He wants to reveal Himself.
Many individuals and Churches speak of knowing Christ, having Christ formed in them, and some even speak of the manifestation of the sons of God (Romans 8), teaching that God is putting together some kind of super powerful sons of God that will be manifested to the world and usher in Jesus second coming. What I would tell each of these groups is that if there is any manifestation, or any forming of Christ in us, it is a forming or manifestation of the inward condition heart Jesus possessed and readily spoke of during in the beginning of His Sermon on the Mount. We neglect to understand, and even deceive ourselves, regarding Gods intention of working in us for His good pleasure, to form Christ in us, when we interpret His intention outside of His forming Christ inward condition of heart in us, for the sole purpose of knowing God, understanding His kingdom, and possessing His inner graces, in Christ. If the Church, or any others for that matter, were to allow and cooperate with Gods’ working in them, an inner condition, of poverty, mourning, hungering and thirsting, purity of heart, meekness, and mercy would know and receive Gods’ blessing, where His blessing is Himself. A church with the heart and inner condition of Jesus, Gods Son, would excel in this earth.
To know God’s blessing is to know it from an inward condition of weakness and humility and not from one of personal strength. Paul explains, “… be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might”. Gods’ way for us are not our ways, or do they conform to this world ways, they are foreign to us, and that we might truly understand Gods’ blessing He works in us, taking us on an inward journey, a downward one that we might learn to be dependent upon Him. The world, teaches us to be self-assertive, aggressive, think positive, willful and grasp for what you want. However, Gods way takes us on a downward journey, an empting of self, that we might know and understand that apart from God, in Christ, in us, through the Holy Spirit, Christians will continue to fail in striving, in their own abilities, strength and wisdom, to live Christ life. Personal failure and guilt are accumulative and painful, those who have struggled with self or wrestled with sin, and at times defeated by both, will continue to get frustrated, feel condemned, where each time we attempt to climb back becomes more challenging; telling ourselves that we will not go that way again only to find ourselves defeated once again. The country song that says its always your favorite sins that will do you in has a ring of truth to it. However, because of Gods redemptive nature, and subsequent work in Christ, He can take advantage of our many failures, and call us out of them to Christ, i.e., to dwell in Him and partake of His divine nature. God knows that in Christ is our safe and secure place. However, we are in need of an inward condition that is penitent, weak, and needy after Him and in our humility and spiritual poverty, we can approach God anew, with respect, repentant, possessing a greater appreciation of Jesus sacrifice for us, and now in the depth of our great pain, dug out from our many failures, we mourn for God. God can now begin to provide the knowledge of His Son (spiritual intelligence), that we might learn to abide and dwell in Christ, our hiding place. Paul summaries Jesus inward condition and mind when He explains to the Philippians Church,
“…Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death…”
The disciples’ downward journey. Andrew Murray, “…there is often a question about the life of holiness. Do you grow into it? Or do you come into it by a crisis suddenly? Peter has been growing for three years under the training of Christ, but he had grown terribly downward, for the end of his growing was, he denied Jesus. Then there came a crisis. After the crisis, he was a changed man, and then he began to grow aright. We must indeed grow in grace, but before we can grow in grace we must be put righteous”
Jesus disciples were fortunate enough to observe Jesus life firsthand, in other words, listen to His teachings, watched as He raised the dead and healed the sick, personally witnessed His divine life and authority interacting with the world, and the people in it, without sin. After three years of walking with Jesus, I am sure the disciples were probably feeling privileged and somewhat self-confident in their position as one of Jesus chosen ones. Occasionally, in the scriptures, we get a glimpse into what the disciples might have been thinking regarding their unique position and personal calling, and the self-confidence that came because they were in the group. For example, asking that they might sit on the right or left of Jesus throne, asking Jesus what they will get, now that they left all to follow Him, wanting to call down lightening, or Peter’s self-assured affirmation that he would lay down his life for Jesus. However, later we see Peter and the other disciples, though Jesus had befriended, taught, loved them, and revealed to them He was Gods Son, they abandoned and denied Him, and scattered in the face of personal danger.
“Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.”
Peter had personally witnessed Jesus standing with Moses and Isaiah transfigured in His glory. Peter, at the bidding of Jesus had walked on water, and God personally gave him a revelation, that Jesus was the Son of God. However, in spite of all that Peter personally knew, experienced, and witnessed, he still vehemently denied Jesus.
“Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.”
And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.”But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
And a little later those who stood by came up and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your speech betrays you.” Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!”
Not only had Peter lied, but also, did so with much anger, even using an oath, denying that he had known Jesus. In addition, Peter cursed and swore; I do not know the man, consequently, we get a look into Peter’s true inner condition. Maybe, walking along side of Jesus, he had been tempted to think he was strong, spiritual, privileged, but in his denial of Jesus, he abruptly learned he was weak; Peters’ true inner condition of heart, and character, was revealed to Him.
I am certain, all the disciples, after following Jesus all those years, knowing His love and personal care for them, after deserting and denying Him, were deeply distressed, regretting they abandoned Him, experiencing pronounced internal pain. Though the disciples had a front row seat, personally observing the life of Jesus, their experience had not necessarily changed their life, i.e., changed who they were in their inward person. Each believed that Jesus was sent from God, in fact, they believed that He was Gods Son and that He was the Messiah, however, their external knowledge had not wrought any real change in them. Only, after the resurrection of Christ, the coming of the Holy Spirit, and after many years of personal experience, revelation, and God given insight, would they understand their inheritance in Him. In other words, they came to know, and experience that, “…without me you can do nothing”.
Like Peter, either God gives us a onetime experience, or over a lifetime, that apart of Christ, in us, we are not right. We need to be thoroughly convinced that without Christ we can do nothing. In the performance of all our religious duties, years of Church attendance, or bible reading, we are tempted to believe that we have truly changed, made progress, are spiritual; however, when placed in a challenging circumstance do we see our true inner character, as Peter had. Most of the time we can dismiss our failures, however as they accumulate and get in our face, causing us a lot of pain, will we finally admit that something is wrong in us, the law of sin and death. One fruit that we have been born from above is that we have in us a desire to please God and even though we struggle to do us most of our life we continue on, though many times defeated and plagued with setbacks. I would suggest that one who knows this internal struggle is better off than one who continues in their religious pretense. John in his letter explains our internal struggle, one of knowing, knowing what we should be, intrinsic to our new birth, laboring with Jesus words, “If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him”.
E.M Bounds suggests that, “…human weakness appeals to the strength of Jesus…”, regrettably, after our new birth; we spend a lot of our time, and energy, attempting to self-diagnose, and fix or improve, what God has explained, through Paul, what has been put to death, in Christ. Our attempts at self-improvements only serve to move us further from Christ. Charles Spurgeon, The Beatitudes, explains the benefit of knowing personal weakness vs. continuing in human strength.
“Human weakness is a small obstacle to salvation compared with human strength; there lies the work and the difficulty. Hence it is a sign of grace to know one’s need of grace. He has some light in his soul who knows and feels that he is in darkness. The Lord himself has wrought a work of grace, upon the spirit which is poor and needy, and trembles at his Word; and it is such a work that it bears within”.
The Church falls short: Initially we see in the book of Acts, after the Holy Spirit had been sent, His work on behalf of the Apostles and the first century church; manifesting many Spiritual gifts, both to initially grow and establish the first century Church. However, later, we begin to read in Paul’s letters, what Gods ultimate intentions were, to reveal His Son, through the Holy Spirit, subsequently His working internally in the Church, His Son life. Paul explains in Romains that “…we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life”. We are saved by His life, i.e., as we dwell in Christ, partaking of His divine nature, we grow up in all aspects into Him, with an expectation, and capability to live for the praise of His glory.
Many seek the Holy Spirits external manifestation, i.e., His power and gifts, however many stop there, thinking that this is true spirituality, dismissing Gods internal work. However, if you read I Corinthians 13 Paul explains that the external manifestation of the Spirit were meant to grow the Church, however, would eventually pass away, because these external things of the Spirit could not mature the Church as God had intended. However, in terms of what is of the most importance, faith, hope, and love, where the greatness of these, as Paul explained, is love (the Agape of God). Gods’ own love is what He intended that the Church might possess and could mature in. Knowledge, wisdom, or other gifts cannot mature the Church in terms of bringing it together, however, Gods Agape can, and is that compelling force that can unify marriages, churches, races, nations or humanity. The preeminence, many faceted, compelling force, of Gods’ love (Agape), in Christ, God has profoundly privileged us to share in.
The Revelation of Jesus: On the road to Damascus Paul had an external revelation of Jesus, where Jesus revealed Himself, in His resurrection glory, the glory that God had crowned Him with, thus blinding Paul’s physical eyes, “…as he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven”. However, later Paul explains that he has had an internal revelation of Jesus, where the eyes of His heart, were enlightened. On the Damascus road, Paul was physically blinded by the glory of the Lord, which I believe later caused Paul many problems with his eyesight, as He alludes to many times in several of His letters to the Churches. However, when God revealed Jesus, in Paul’s spirit, this same glory God had crowned Jesus with, did not blind him however became a source of light, and revelation, unto the knowledge of the Son, and Gods kingdom. Paul wrote to the Galatians Church,
“But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles”.
How can we know the Son, through the Holy Spirit we receive the knowledge of Christ, an accumulation of spiritual wisdom, or intelligence, i.e., insight and understanding given to us from above, Spiritual things. Paul provides us with additional insight, in two letters he wrote to both the Colossian and Ephesian churches. Paul, recognizing and acknowledging the evidence that the Ephesians and Colossians Churches had the Spirit, in that, he heard of their faith and love, both fruits of the new birth, Paul explains the means to their maturity, a God given knowledge and insight of the Son, in their spirit, i.e., the eyes of their heart being enlightened.
…for this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints (the people of God),
“…I do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your heart being enlightened”
Therefore, we must seek those things above, where Christ is seated. God wants, and directs us, always to His Son, who had walked according to Gods’ will and pleased Him. Any gospel preached, from any pulpit that does not convict and inspire the Church to abide in Christ, is an empty message; it is the life of Jesus Christ that saves us. God gives us insight and understanding of all those things He accomplished in Christ, on our behalf. God works that we might hear and perceive, giving the knowledge of His Son, our dwelling and resting place.
“…until we all attain oneness in the faith and in the comprehension of the [ full and accurate] knowledge of the Son of God”
“For whoever has [spiritual knowledge], to him will more be given and he will be furnished richly so that he will have abundance…”
“…that you yourselves are rich in goodness, amply filled with all [spiritual] knowledge and competent to admonish and counsel and instruct one another…”
“…steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God”
“For His divine power has bestowed upon us all things that [are requisite and suited] to life and godliness, through the [full, personal] knowledge of Him Who called us…”
The Wisdom in the World vs. Gods Wisdom: unfortunately, many a miss-guided unbeliever claims that Christians are ignorant folk, for example, a popular TV personality,” says Christians and others who are religious suffer from a neurological disorder that “stops people from thinking.” Also, regarding our belief, in a six-day creation, one scientist suggests that Fundamentalist Christians choose ignorance over knowledge.”
What the TV personality, and many arrogant scientists do not understand, nor could they, is the knowledge and wisdom in this world is important as far as it affords us Christians a means to get work, make daily pragmatic decisions, and function socially in our local communities, i.e., in terms possessing a pragmatic-life, Christians are dependent upon these things. However, what escapes unbeliever’s attention is Christians are neither dependent, nor reliant, upon this world’s knowledge, or its wisdom, in knowing our God. We seek a higher knowledge, one that does not exist in this world, nor is it taught in this world’s higher learning institutions. The knowledge that Christians have available is a knowledge that comes only by and through the Holy Spirit. The knowledge we seek is hidden and revealed in Christ, by saying revealed, I do not mean, by any stretch of the imagination, anything extra-biblical. Knowing God, is deeper than reason, it is those things wrought in our spirit by the Holy Spirit of God. God is Spirit, and it is through His Spirit that we come to know Him.
“…What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.”
Knowing this that neither the secular scientist, nor the theologian can prove or disprove biblical claims based upon physical, theoretical, nor empirical evidence, however, we see Paul writing to the Corinthian Church,
“Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe”
The key sentence in the verse above is “the world through (their) wisdom did not know God”. The wisdom of this world is empty in terms of knowing God, or His invisible Kingdom, attempting to know God, through the wisdom of this world, is foolish “… God made foolish the wisdom of this world”; systematic study of philosophy, science, or even theology is but futile exercises; for philosophy and theology provide historical knowledge about the Son, or the Father, but fall short in knowing Him. In coming to God, as a believer, or unbeliever, our approach is one of humility, respect, and reverence. If we are full of the light of this world, this light becomes darkness in us. Humility and poverty of spirit speaks of our need for God and his manner of salvation of our souls. Unfortunately, if God does not draw someone, the only proof that many unbelievers will have is on the Day of Judgment.
Gods’ provision is a spiritual one, in other words spiritual wisdom and knowledge, taught and revealed to us, by the Holy Spirit. This world neither sees, nor understands, what our source of knowledge is, because it does not see, nor know what God has freely given to us, through His Spirit, sent into our spirit, because they do not have this same Spirit. The bible is a spiritual book its content is reserved for those who are spiritual; its substance is for the most part shrouded and remains a mystery to the unregenerate, and to the carnal mind. A.W. Tozer, provides us with some insight regarding our approach to reading the bible.
“The saving power of the Word is reserved for those for whom it is intended. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him. The impenitent heart will find the Bible but a skeleton of facts without flesh or life or breath. Shakespeare may be enjoyed without penitence; we may understand Plato without believing a word he says; but penitence and humility along with faith and obedience are necessary to a right understanding of the Scriptures.”
In vain, apart from the Holy Spirit, do we try to convince unbelievers, those without the Spirit, of the virgin birth, a six-day creation, or Jesus miracles? The unbelievers deem us as foolish and ignorant people because we believe these things. However, we believe, in the unexplainable, things difficult or impossible to prove, e.g., a six-day creation, because we believe in the God who said it is true, i.e., our evidence is based upon our knowing our God in trust, in faith, in love for the One whom we commune with. A simple child, out of respect and love for their parents will believe in what they tell him. The child believes because he knows his parents; experienced their love, security, provision, and integrity. Knowing our Father, we learn to trust Him, experience His love, consequently we trust Him in those things that are difficult to understand in His word. Things we cannot necessarily explain though believe, because we have learned to rely upon and trust in our heavenly Father, “…let God be true but every man a liar”.
I Could Not Speak to you as to Spiritual people: the second birth is not a guarantee we are making any real progress in a spiritual walk, nor does it mean that we possess what I previously called a spiritual intelligence. After the Holy Spirit descended from heaven, at the direction of the Father, it would mean that believers would have access, through the Spirit, to the things of Gods invisible Kingdom, including its mysteries hidden in Christ.
Paul admonishes the first century Corinthian Church, regarding their neglect and lack of any real spiritual progress, i.e., they were not able to receive, from Paul, any spiritual teaching. Paul reprimands the Corinthian Christians for their deficiency as a spiritual mature people, and proof of this inadequacy, their carnality.
“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal?”
Paul explaining that the primary evidence of their spiritual immaturity is their envy, strife, and divisions, i.e., works of the flesh and soul, and not works of the Spirit, fruit. The intentions of things given, and revealed, from above, were meant to mature the Church, i.e., possessing knowledge, wisdom, understanding (intelligence) making progress in the knowledge of God and Christ, in whom we have access, to His fruits, fruits of the Spirit, which are the benchmark , or evidence, of spiritual maturity. The Corinthians knew, and experienced, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in their assemblies; however, they had not move on from the external manifestation of the Spirit, unto a recognition and maturity of the Holy Spirits operation, in them, His daily activity of revealing, instructing, and reminding the Church of the things of Christ. Rather than maturing spiritually, exercising spiritual senses of discernment regarding what is good, or what is evil, the Corinthian remained dull in their hearing.
“And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing”
“…But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil”
The Church must move on to a level of maturity, as understood and taught in the gospels. Moving on from a superficial understanding of scriptures to what God has intended, and intends in Christ.
One indicator of immaturity today, is how we look at external things within the Church. If we see large audiences, charisma personalities, large buildings, even the manifestation of spiritual gifts as the evidence of spiritual maturity, we remain carnal believers. We make progress, only as the inward man, in accordance with the wisdom and knowledge received from above, in accordance with the text; move us to seek to abide in Christ, partaking of His divine nature. A.W.Tozer explained,
“Paul in First Corinthians teaches that God can be known only as the Holy Spirit performs in the seeking heart an act of self-disclosure. The yearning to know what cannot be known, to comprehend the incomprehensible, to touch and taste the unapproachable, arises from the image of God in the nature of man.”
Church Restoration: God does not leave us alone to sift through all the winds of doctrine and theological mayhem that waft its way through our assemblies, God has a predetermined provision, and is personally involved in our learning, to establish us in Christ; as Isaiah prophesied,
“…And they shall all be taught by God. Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.”
In addition, Moses instructs the Jews before they entered the promise land.
“To you it was shown, that you might realize and have personal knowledge that the Lord is God; there is no other besides Him’.
Many intelligent people have spent their whole life studying and reading the bible, however, these efforts spent are in vain if one does not learn first from their heavenly Father; knowledge about God is of little value in knowing Him. Many scriptures committed to memory, or preached in man’s wisdom are soon forgotten, especially as we get older. However, that which God speaks, and illuminates, through the Holy Spirit impressing upon our spirit living words, is internal, and not forgotten, i.e., a faith that rests upon the power of God. If our faith rests upon our daily ability to recall scriptures, verse-by-verse, this is but shifting sands under our feet.
Now, through the grace of God and the work of Christ, the Holy Spirit has made His residence in our spirit, therefore, we need to develop and mature our spiritual senses; senses essential in discerning spiritual things, that we might make real progress in terms of communing and knowing the voice of God.
“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual”.
Unfortunately, spiritual things are often miss-understood and rarely spoken of from the pulpits in American Churches, consequently the voice of God is absent resulting in powerless preaching, a weak faith, and a lot of miss interpretation of scriptures, which leads to a subversion of the gospel message, leading to much error.
For most Christians an inward life is too subjective and considered mystical. I can understand the concern most have, who question what spirit is, because there is a lot of questionable behavior understood to be spiritual, and is both weird and overtly animated. We are spiritual beings, and it is in our spirit that God reveals Himself, as Jesus explains the dynamics of His, and the Fathers dwelling,
“… Jesus answered and said to him, “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”
A.W. Tozer, The dwelling place of God, explains,
“From man’s standpoint the most tragic loss suffered in the Fall was the vacating of this inner sanctum by the Spirit of God. At the far-in hidden center of man’s being is a bush fitted to be the dwelling place of the Triune God. There God planned to rest and glow with moral and spiritual fire. Man by his sin forfeited this indescribably wonderful privilege and must now dwell there alone. For so intimately private is the place that no creature can intrude; no one can enter but Christ; and He will enter only by the invitation of faith. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20)”.
One’s ability to learn something new is a product of reason and memory, however, these things ebb over time, but those things resident in our spirit remain, and are eternal, things our faith is nourished by, and rests upon, living words. We cannot know the reality of our God apart from a spiritual life, therefore, as mentioned, we need to develop senses characteristics of our spiritual nature; capabilities that enable us to hear, see, and receive, as Paul explains,
“The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have received the Spirit who is from God
“…But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
John William Fletcher, Christ Manifested, a seventeen-century author, and contemporary of John Wesley wrote,
“Though we have, in common with beasts, bodily organs of sight, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling, adapted to outward objects; though we enjoy, in common with devils, the faculty of reasoning upon natural truths, and mathematical propositions, yet we do not understand supernatural and divine things. Notwithstanding all our speculations about them, we can neither see nor taste them truly, unless we are risen with Christ and taught of God. We may, indeed, speak and write about them, as the blind may speak of colours, and the deaf dispute of sounds, but it is all guesswork, hearsay, and mere conjecture. The things of the Spirit of God can be discovered only by spiritual internal senses, which are, with regard to the spiritual world, what our external senses are with regard to the material world. They are the only means by which a fellowship between Christ and our souls can be opened and maintained. The exercise of these senses is peculiar to those who are born of God. They belong to what the apostles call the new man, the inward man, the new creature, the hidden man of the heart. In believers, this hidden man is awakened and raised from the dead, by the power of Christ’s resurrection.”
Therefore, due to the dismissal of the Holy Spirit in us, the Church is full of carnal Christians, those who consistently miss interprets and miss understand the gospel, consequently, the Church begins to drift off into various errors, where the gospel message is compromised, and takes on a form that was not intended by the first century authors. When error becomes excessive, God has to send His messengers to restore the words purity, purpose, and intentions.
True restoration of the gospel message begins with an authority given to Gods approved ministers. As the Church continues off its scriptural path, the Lord sends messengers into His Church, men trusted with His authority, an authority to bring the gospel back in line with what had been initially revealed to the first century Apostles. Paul, trusted with this authority provides some insight into His dealing with error in the Corinthian Church.
“…but I beg you that when I am present I may not be bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold against some, who think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 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, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.”
Had Paul been addressing, as some might want us to believe, the external world, or unseen demons and devils that work in it? No, Paul was addressing error that false Apostles were introducing into the Corinthian congregation. The strongholds were arguments, reasoning’s, and every high thing that attempts to subvert the knowledge of God given to Paul and other true Apostles. Therefore, if there is going to be any restoration it has to begin in the Church in pulling down all the foolish, or demonic, watered down, teaching, preaching, or prophecies that have poured into the Church.
We do not need more programs, more education, or charismatic cheerleaders or flamboyant preachers, what we need is God given men who can be trusted with Gods authority, as Paul had, in the pulling down of every lofty thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We need the power of God, not some who would imitate it, but those who have it. Power and authority in pulling down every stronghold (People, or groups, holding to a controversial viewpoints contrary to the gospel, as revealed to Paul) and the casting down of arguments (imaginations, theories or reasoning) to subjugate all reasoning’s (in the Church) too obedience to the Christ.
Today, the Church is anemic and worldly due to a spiritual vacuum that exists in it. In this vacuum, all types of carnality and worldliness has come in to re place the Holy Spirit .Scougal gives us a picture of an inward working of the Spirit.
“He hath sent out his Holy Spirit, whose sweet but powerful breathings are still moving up and down in the world, to quicken and revive the souls of men, and awaken them unto the sense and feeling of those divine things for which they were made, and is ready to assist such weak and languishing creatures as we are, in our essays towards holiness and felicity: and when once it hath taken hold of a soul, and kindled in it the smallest spark of divine love, it will be sure to preserve and cherish, and bring it forth into a flame, “which many waters shall not quench, neither shall the floods be able to drown it.”
The Nature of the Wisdom from Above: (to be continued)
Final Thoughts: Spiritual intelligence is a product of the activities of the Holy Spirit in us. The Holy Spirit administers the things He receives from the Father and impresses them upon our spirit. We begin to receive from above when God can trust our inner condition, one of humility, as opposed to one that is grasping for Gods things from the impurity of heart. True restoration begins as the Church begins to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is in them and works in and amongst them.
A.W Tozer, Born After Midnight, explains the necessity and importance of the Holy Spirit, “There is no witness, no immediacy of knowledge, no encounter with God, and no awareness of inner change.”
Know this, when your Preachers finishes preaching, he goes home, however, it is the Holy Spirit, in you, who continues working faithfully: teaching, and instructing, appending what the. When you set your bible aside, after a reading session, who continues to go out with you, through your day, instructing, convicting, encouraging you, bringing to bear the light of heaven upon our inward part, the eyes of our heart might be enlightened. That we might understand Gods purpose, plan and intention, in Christ, filled with the wisdom from above regarding what has been Gods will before the foundations of the world, in Christ. The Holy Spirit does the work, that we might be those who are spiritually intelligent. Paul recognizing the difference between the old and the new, and the excellence of the new, makes a rather starling statement,
“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”