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April 18 - June 1, 2018
When he reveals his glory to Moses he is revealing power but not for its own sake. Rather, God’s power reveals his spectacular love. In the end God’s glory is his character. A true revelation of God’s glory, a genuine miracle, a real act of supernatural power will cause us to wonder afresh at his character—his goodness, mercy and compassion.
Their lives were transformed because they found him to be full of goodness, mercy and compassion. They encountered a power that revealed the love of God and were changed forever.
These “works” of Jesus are called “signs and wonders”. They signposted people to God’s love. And they caused them to wonder: “There is a God and this is what he’s like.”
unless we make love our aim we haven’t a hope of revealing the glory of God to others.
Our goal should be relationship with Jesus, not power from Jesus.
“Show me your glory,” he also said: “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here … What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” (Exod. 33:15, 16).
What really distinguishes us is that we are a people of God’s presence. It’s never been about what we can do—it’s about who we are with.
There is one foundational key to becoming increasingly tuned in to the supernatural; it is pursuing relationship with God and seeking to be close to him.
One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. (Ps. 27:4–5)
As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? (Ps. 42:1–2)
He could have sought God for a great army or great wealth but left us in no doubt that his one driving ambition was to be in God’s presence.
And today, whenever we meet someone who is being used by God in incredible ways, we realise they are uncompromising in their pursuit of Jesus. They are not seeking power from him, but relationship with him.
God’s desire is not only that we might move in supernatural power, it’s that we might live a life of intimacy with him. His first concern is to draw us close.
“Where are you?” (Gen. 3:9). The human race has been hiding from God’s presence ever since.
Whilst we in no way want to suggest that God is like a girlfriend, he did make similar demands to the people of Israel. He wanted to say to them, “If you are to be in my presence you need to understand that I’m holy, and by doing these things you recognise the relationship has to be on my terms.”
although they eventually returned and rebuilt the temple there is no account of God’s presence returning.
To be near Jesus is to be healed, body, mind and soul, because Jesus is life.
God’s Son experienced the momentary darkness of separation, that we might know the eternal light of God’s presence. With Adam and Eve we went into hiding, on the cross Jesus found us. We never need to hide again.
The great secret Paul is talking about—the one that has been kept hidden for hundreds of years—is not Christ beside us. It’s not Christ near us. It’s Christ within us.
The key to living a life full of supernatural power is to understand that the power is in the presence. As we are close to Jesus so we will see him move in us and through us. The power is in the presence. And his presence is in us.
“How utterly amazing, Almighty God lived here, in this very place. This was where the ark of the covenant was. This is where the Glory fell.” And then it hit us: “And now he lives in us.”
All Christians, whether they have had a dramatic physical encounter or not, have the Spirit living inside of them. This is what the Bible teaches and if you’re still wondering, here are a couple of tests you can do:
“Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, ‘Jesus be cursed,’ and no one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:3). This is a simple but crucial proof of the Spirit’s activity. It’s not possible to say and mean, “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit.
This is a sign of him living in you. If you acknowledge Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour, it is because the Spirit is at work within you.
“Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires” (Rom. 8:5). A second sign of the Spirit at work in our lives is that we begin to desire what he desires.
When you spend time with someone who cares about something deeply—whether it’s food, fashion or football—their passion can be contagious.
Some of us live with a quiet fear that we are the only Christians who don’t have the Spirit inside us. We’re the ones who will sink. If that’s you, be at peace. Put simply, you want to follow Jesus, don’t you? That’s the result of God’s Spirit inside you.
If we told you the spirit of Lionel Messi had come to live inside of you, you would be right to expect a dramatic increase in your football skills. If the Spirit of God is inside us, shouldn’t we expect to be different?
We receive everything in Christ but we can also be filled with the Holy Spirit—not just once, but many times as we follow God.
First, the Holy Spirit is described as a “gift”. There’s nothing we do to earn a “gift”.
There can be no Pentecost without Calvary; the Spirit comes from the cross.
The cross entitles us to the forgiveness of sins, and to the gift of the Spirit. Some of us have forgotten to accept the gift of the Spirit. All we need to do is recognise that he is a gift we are entitled to, explain to the Father we would like to receive him, and accept him.
There is no secret formula to asking for the Spirit. It is simply a case of praying. We don’t need to use special words, just be real and honest with God. If there are two more things to note they are:
“Repent… And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). To repent means to “turn around”.
In a remote area of China some Bible translators got stuck when they realised the language had no words for “Holy Spirit”. After a lot of thought they decided that the best description in the language was “resident boss”. So for a while in an area of China the Trinity was described as the Father, the Son and the Resident Boss! What a great name!
The Spirit comes to take control of our lives and he comes to lead us (Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:18).
It’s not that we are getting more of the Spirit so that we can use him for our will; he is getting more of us so he can use us for his will.
In case we are afraid to surrender, Jesus is careful to reassure us, “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?” (Luke 11:11–12). There is no sting in the tail when God gives a gift. To surrender control to him is to surrender to a God who has selflessly and freely laid down his life for us. He is trustworthy.
