The Lamp of the Lord

I read a book entitled "You Can Be Led By The Spirit of God" authored by Kenneth E. Hagin, about 30 years ago and have recently purchased another for our children to read. I wanted to bring another excerpt from it today entitled "The Lamp of the Lord" Yummy!

The Lamp of the Lord

Romans 8:14
For as many as are led by the Sirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Romans 8:16
The Spirit itself (Himself) beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.

Proverbs 20:27
The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.

Children of God can expect to be led by the Spirit of God.

Another translation of Proverbs 20:27 reads, “The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord….” Had this verse been written today it might have read, “The spirit of man is the light bulb of the Lord.” What it means is this: God will enlighten us – He will guide us – through our spirits.

Many times, however, we seek guidance by means other than the way God said. When we do, we get into trouble. We sometimes judge how God is leading by what our physical senses tell us. But nowhere does God say that God will guide us through our physical senses. Too often we look at things from a mental standpoint and endeavor to reason out things. But nowhere does the Bible say God will guide us through our mentality. The Bible does not say that the body of man is the candle of the Lord, nor that the mind of man is the candle of the Lord.

God will guide us – He will enlighten us – through our spirits.

Now before we can understand how God does lead us and guide us through our spirits, we have to understand the nature of man. We have to understand that man is a spirit, that he has a soul, and that he lives in a body.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Father, HELP US to know how to be led by YOU through our own spirits, in Jesus' Name.

Difference Between Spirit and Soul?

I read a book entitled "You Can Be Led By The Spirit of God" authored by Kenneth E. Hagin, about 30 years ago and have recently purchased another for our children to read. I wanted to bring an excerpt from it today entitled "What Is the Difference Between Spirit and Soul?" Yummy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit...

The spirit and the soul are not the same.

Many years ago, back in the early '50's, I began an intensive study on this subject. I got books from the leading Bible schools and seminaries, both Pentecostal and denominational, to see what they taught on the subject of man. Non satisfied me. None were actually scriptural. They were only scriptural, as the Bible says "in part." I asked leading Bible scholars and ministers across the nation. You would recognize some of their names if I mentioned them. I even heard someone ask one of today's most well-known ministers, "What is the difference between the spirit and the soul?" He looked startled and said, "I thought they were the same." That was the answer I got from most of the ministers I asked.

Yet how could they be the same? Paul, by the Spirit of God, said they can be divided by the Word of God (Hebrews 4:12). If you can divide them, they cannot be the same.

Only the Word of God can divide the spirit and the soul, however. The reason we have not been able to distinguish between them is that we have not dug deeply enough into the Word. Years ago, in the western part of the United States, they had what we call "the gold rush." People rushed out West. They were gong to get rich in a hurry. Most panned a little gold out of creeks. Some found a few nuggets lying on the ground. But if you really wanted to strike it rich, you had to dig or it. The same is true in spiritual matters: You can skim along on the surface of the Bible and pan out a little gold here and there - and even find a nugget occasionally. But if you really want to strike it rich, you have to dig down deep into the Word of God.

For 15 years I studied carefully, burning the midnight oil. If there was anything I desired to know it was the difference between the spirit and the soul. Eventually, I went through this process of elimination. I wrote it down like this: With my body I contact the physical realm. (That goes without argument.) With my spirit I contact the spiritual realm. That left only one other part of me that made contact with any other realm. I knew then that it had to be with my soul that I contacted the intellectual or soulish realm (which included the emotions and the intellect). So I wrote: With my soul I contact the intellectual ream. Here is a scripture that helped me:

I Corinthians 14:14
For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.

The Amplified translation reads, "For if I pray in an (unknown) tongue, my spirit (by the Holy Spirit within me) prays, but my mind is unproductive...."

Our understanding, our natural human mentality, is a part of our soul.

Notice what Paul said. "My spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful." He did not say, "When I pray in an unknown tongue my soul prays." He did not say, "When I pray in tongues, I pray out of my intellect, or out of my mind." He said in effect, "I am not praying out of my soul when I pray in tongues; I am praying out of my spirit, my heart, my innermost being." Do you remember what Jesus said?

John 7:37-39
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, OUT OF HIS BELLY will flow rivers of living water."
39 BUT THIS HE SPAKE OF THE SPIRIT, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

As a result of receiving the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, 'out of the belly shall flow rivers of living water." Another translation reads, "out of the innermost being will flow rivers of living water."

A Full Gospel pastor's daughter was six years old when she and some of the children were off by themselves one night at a revival. Some of these youngster were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues. This little six year old, holding her stomach, ran up to her mother, saying, "Momma, Momma, that came right out of my belly."

She was being scriptural. She was speaking in tongues from her belly - her spirit, her innermost being. That's where tongues come from - the Holy Spirit who resides in your spirit gives your spirit the utterance and you speak it out.

Consider these scriptures together now. "The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the INWARD PARTS OF THE BELLY....OUT OF HIS BELLY shall flow rivers of living water..."

All the leading I have ever received have come from out of my spirit. And most of them have come while I was praying in other tongues. You can understand why. Your spirit is active when you are praying in tongues.

One reason the church world as a whole has failed so miserably is that it has done so much of just one kind of praying -- praying with the understanding, or mental praying. Christians have endeavored to fight spiritual battles with mental abilities.

I have learned this through these many, many years. In every crisis of life I have learned to look to my spirit inside me. I have learned to pray in other tongues. While I am praying in other tongues, guidance comes up from inside me. This is because my spirit is active. My body is not active, my mind (my soul) is not active, but my spirit is active, and it is through my spirit that God is going to guide me.

Sometimes I interpret what I am praying in tongues, and through the interpretation I receive light and guidance (I Corinthians 14:13). But most o the time, that is not so. Most of the time, just while I am praying in tongues, from somewhere way down inside, I can sense something rise up in me. It begins to take shape and form. I cannot tell anyone mentally how I know it, because my understanding has nothing to do with it. But I know on the inside of me what to do.

I follow that. I listen to my spirit. Because the spirit of man is the candle of the Lord.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Father, I ask You to HELP US to know the difference between our soul and our spirit. Help us to know WHERE you speak to us and how to hear and listen to you, in Jesus' Name.

Unfortunately, We Can't judge Christianity by "Christians"....

We can't necessarily judge Christianity by "Christians"...the only way we can judge Christianity is by the life of Christ, and His Word.

If we look to people, they will fail us, and we are not to pattern our lives from "human", just JESUS.

Romans 13:14 tells us:
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.

Ephesians 4:24 says:
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Colossians 3:8-11
8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.
9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds,
10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,
11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.

Romans 8:12-14
12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors--not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

We're instructed in Romans 12:1,2
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.


Father, HELP US to walk like You, talk like You and move and have our being IN YOU by putting on Your Son, Jesus. Help us to make Your Word final authority in our lives, and not to make excuses for the flesh and the lusts that come out of it. Help us to learn to be LED by YOUR SPIRIT. Help us not to lean on ANYONES arm of flesh, but to look to Your Son, the author and finisher of our faith. Thank You for HELPING US. In the Name of Your Son, Jesus. Amen

Are You Going My Way?

Remember the old 1944 movie "Going My Way"? With Bing Crosby, Barry Fitzgerald and Rise Stevens? Crosby got an oscar for "best actor" from this movie that year. Look at that gorgeous dress Rise is wearing!



In Jeremiah 6:16 we're instructed:
Thus saith the LORD, Stand in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and you shall find rest for your souls.



To the tune of "FOLLOWING THE LEADER, THE LEADER, THE LEADER, FOLLOWING THE LEADER WHEREVER HE MAY GO."



We've got to TRACK DOWN God's plans and His paths for our lives.

If we're not hearing God, that's troublesome grounds to be on.
If we're ignoring the voice of God, THAT will be troublesome to us.
If we're busying ourselves with taking care of everyone else around us and wanting to pencil God in on our day....it smacks of "Forget You God, I'm too busy."

"Oh no, I've already got plans!" Quit making plans and then asking God to bless them. He wants us to seek out His plans and paths for our lives and THAT'S what He can BLESS.

Matthew 24:12 tells us:
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

I WANT TO HEAR GOD
AND KNOW WHAT GOD WANTS ME TO DO

I've had enough failure in my life, haven't you? We can get into darkness by disobeying the Word of God. God's looking for SOMEONE to stand in the gap and PRAY and INTERCEDE.

We need to be FILLED with the Holy Ghost and the FIRE OF GOD in all of our lives, and the Word of God is the logs on our fire. It's going to take the Word of God to save us, to heal us, to deliver and keep us and to get us out of here.

Proverbs 14:12 tells us:
There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Proverbs 16:25 says:
There is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Romans 6:21 warns us:
What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

We need to stay in His WAY, the paths of His choosing, the old paths, the good WAY. We must hear from Him and FOLLOW His lead.

Psalm 50:23
Whoever offers praise glorifies Me and to him who orders his conduct aright, I will show the salvation of God.



Father, HELP US to be hungry and thirsty after You. Help us to seek You with our whole hearts, and not be a disappointment to ourselves and place ourselves on dangerous grounds vulnerable to our enemy. You said for us that know to do good and does it not, it's sin. Circumcise our ears, HELP us to HEAR YOU, open our eyes, Help us to quickly obey what your instructions are to us, FOLLOW YOU, and not give a place to our enemy. FILL US with Your Spirit and with Your FIRE, to burn out everything that does not belong with us. Thank You for your tender mercies towards us all. Thank You for making every provision we need to live this life in total VICTORY. You have brought such strength to all of us, Lord, HELP US to be led by Your Spirit and by Your peace, in Jesus' Name.

Saving of the "soul."

About 30 years ago I read one of Mr. Kenneth E. Hagin's books entitled "You Can Be Led By The Spirit of God"

It really did bring a lot of insight into my life and what I'm sharing today is an excerpt from it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Saving of the Soul

James 1:21
...receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save our souls.

The spirit of man is the part of man that is born again. It is the part of man that received eternal life., which is the nature and life of God. It is the spirit of man that becomes a new creature in Christ Jesus. The soul is not the innermost being at all. It is not the soul that is born again. The saving of the soul is a process.

James 1:21 used to bother me when I was a denominational preacher before I was filled with the Holy Spirit. I didn't know what I know now. I used spirit as the soul, and interchangeably - referring to the spirit as the soul, and the soul as the spirit. I didn't divide them as the Bible does. But I did have enough sense to leave this verse alone until I grew so that I could understand what it is saying.

The Epistle of James was not written to sinners. James did not write a letter to the world; he wrote this letter to the Church. We know that because of James 5 where he says, "is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church..." (vs 14). In other words, if there is any sick among the Church, let him call for the elders of the Church. Also referring back now to the first chapter of James, let's pick up with verse 8:
18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.
19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;
20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

James is talking to born-again believers. Of the Father's own will, he writes, we were begotten, or born again by the Word of Truth. He calls them "my beloved brethren." so they were in Christ. Yet he encourages these born-again Spirit-filled people to receive the engrafted Word with meekness, "...which is able to save your soul." Evidently, their souls were not saved.

You see, a man's spirit, the innermost man, the real man, receives eternal life and is born again. But his intellect and emotions -- which comprise his soul -- still have to be dealt with. They are not born again. They are to be renewed.

Paul speaks about the renewing of the mind, writing to the saints at Rome.

Romans 12:2
2. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

The Psalmist David spoke of restoring of the soul:

Psalm 23:3
3. He restoreth my soul....

The Hebrew word translated restore in the Old Testament, and the Greek word translated renew in the New Testament mean about the same thing. The should -- the mind -- is to be renewed or restored.

My mother left me a chair which she inherited from her mother. I don't know exactly how old that chair is, but it is quite old. I can remember when my grandmother had it restored. They put new upholstery on it. They revarnished it. It was still the same chair; it was just restored. It was renewed.

In the Word of God it is never written that God restores our spirits. Our spirits -new creatures in Christ Jesus. Our souls, however, must be renewed or restored.

How? We have these scriptures relative to the soul: receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls...be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God....He restoreth my soul (James 1:21; Romans 12:2; Psalm 23:3)

Man's soul is saved, or restored, when his mind becomes renewed with the Word of God. It is the Word of God that saves our souls, that renews our minds, that restores our souls.

When our minds become renewed with the Word of God, then we think in line with what God's Word says. We are able to know and prove the permissive and the perfect will of God -- because the Word of God is the will of God once we get our souls saved.

The greatest need in the Church today is to have minds renewed with the Word of God.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Father, I ask You to HELP US to renew our minds/souls to your Word. Thank You for HELPING US to put your Word first place in our lives and to make it the final authority OF our lives. It helps us to see with Your eyes, believe what You say, and speak and agree with You. In Jesus' Name.