THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD
THE FIRST
GOD'S SPIRIT OF LOVE
The subject of this article is deep, it is profound, it is 'strong meat'. This entire subject, if written in book form, could be divided in 7 chapters and each chapter could be long enough in itself to comprise an entire book.
I have never in my entire life heard this subject preached, or taught by any 'man'. There may well be many who 'will not' or 'can not' receive the words written here as God's TRUTH. There were MANY who did not even believe Jesus himself and Many today who while claiming him as Lord, they still will Not believe 'HIS' words. The things contained herein, were given me by God over 20 years ago and at first, I was so, so, anxious to share these things with everyone. Soon however, it became obvious the 'the time' for this was not yet. For years I did not understand God's reason for this, but now in hindsight, I can see that even today many will still not receive these things as being God's TRUTH. Be that as it may, I have no other choice but to share these words now. How many of you who are reading these words have ever heard something for the first time, and although you didn't know why, you just knew that it was true? I pray that such will be the case here.
Let me begin by saying that although we will find it necessary to study each of God's 7 Spirits separately, it will be 'only' after their relationship to each other is understood that anyone can fully comprehend the importance of this TRUTH to the 'BODY OF CHRIST' in these last days.
Hopefully, all Christians should know and agree that there is only ONE God the Father, only ONE Jesus, and only ONE Holy Spirit. Our beginning scripture references are found in Rev. 4:5 and Rev. 3:1
In Revelations 4:5 we can read about a scene in Heaven which John saw describing God's throne. I will include only the portion of verse necessary for our study. “And there were 7 lamps of fire burning before the throne, which ARE 'the SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD'. The word 'spirits' as used has many possible meanings but the best choices possible for our purpose here and the only ones that fit, will be found to mean, 'vital principle' or 'mental disposition'. You need to give careful attention to these words and I will do the best I can to aid in your understanding. The 'SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD' as used in this verse describe the 7 (meaning the complete) nature and characteristics of God. God our Father is not a 'one' dimensional being. Mankind, being created in God's image, are likewise, not one dimensional either. I realize that this may sound rather complicated at first but if you will bear with me for but for a few moments more, it will prove to be 'so simple' that this fact in itself, will explain why this TRUTH has remained hidden for so long. The truth is , it's been hidden in 'PLAIN SIGHT'.
I will address each of THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD in the same order God revealed them to me. Our Heavenly Father 'always' knows best. The first of God's SEVEN SPIRITS is 'LOVE'. I truly believe God chose that one first because it's the easiest to see and understand and the remaining 6 are dependent UPON, 'walking in' and being 'a doer of' GOD'S SPIRIT OF LOVE. Most Christians should be familiar with our next verse which is found in 1st John 4:16. Again, I will quote only the part necessary to keep us 'zeroed in' on the subject at hand. This in no way indicates that you should not study the entire verses or thoughts in context. Verse 16 - “God 'IS' Love,” Read this for exactly what it says and 'not' for what it does 'NOT' say. It says, “God 'IS' Love,” It does not say God has LOVE, but, that he 'IS' LOVE. Next, you will need to consider the words of Jesus as found in St. John 4:24 – Here, Jesus makes a flat out statement when he says, God 'IS' a Spirit. Jesus did not say, God 'has' a Spirit, but that He (God) 'IS' a Spirit. Now you need simply add one plus one and the answer can only be two. If God 'IS' Love and God 'IS' a Spirit, which He is in both cases, it should be easy to see that Love 'IS' a SPIRIT. Please keep in mind that we are studying LOVE as being the first of GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS, but by no means, should you get the idea that this 'LOVE' that He IS, is ONLY 1/ 7th of what God 'IS' The best way I've found to describe this so far, is to say it like this. God is a 700% God. He is 100% LOVE from the top of his head down to the soles of his feet. What the church has failed to realize over these past hundreds of years is simply that there is much more to God than just simply 'BEING LOVE'. For the purpose of this study you need remember that this SPIRIT OF LOVE is only ONE of, but not God's 'complete' NATURE, his characteristics, his vital principles, if you will. Another verse that goes well here is, “LOVE never fails,” (partial). If LOVE never fails and God IS Love, then you also have the clear meaning that “God NEVER fails,” It will also prove helpful here if you consider that the word 'fails' can also mean 'to cease to exist'. Go back now to 1st. John 4:7-10 - verse 7 - “for LOVE is 'OF' God,” (partial). What is the meaning of this verse which says that “LOVE is 'OF' God?” It means simply the origin of LOVE is found in God, it originated 'inside' of God, it came out of God, and our great God released HIS LOVE (the LOVE that he IS) into our world each and every time he spoke his words, as for example, in John 3:16. When God had the words of this verse spoken by Jesus, God's 'SPIRIT OF LOVE', was contained in HIS words which told of his Great LOVE. All those who heard those words and 'chose to believe and receive' God's Word's telling us of His great LOVE, received also God's Spirit of LOVE. If allowed to 'remain inside' of the hearers who received it, and if it is nurtured and practiced, (walked in), it 'will produce' a new creature who has the ability to LOVE as God LOVES. It will also prove helpful if you keep in mind that God's Words are, 'much' more than ink on paper, they 'are' SPIRIT and they are ALIVE. Back briefly to 1st. John 4:10 we can read that God loved us 'first'. We were 'NOT' just a bunch of sinners bopping down the road one day who decided that we would start loving God. Many today might try to take credit for that being the case, but God's Word says he 'FIRST' loved us. Just understand that Love originated in God and came from God, and it came into this earth, contained in His Words which told us of HIS great LOVE toward us. As already mentioned before, God is 'ALL' LOVE, but LOVE is not 'all' that God 'IS'. He is 100% LOVE but he is 'equally' as much the 6 other SPIRITS OF GOD as he is LOVE. It is the 'sum total' of 'all 7' things that God IS, that makes him to be God. One thing I have learned over the years is that this subject is much easier to understand, than it is to explain. Before we leave the subject of God's LOVE, let me just say that this LOVE we're talking about, is not what humans normally consider to be love. God's SPIRIT of LOVE is described in His WORD as 'perfect love', complete love, and for lack of a better word, 'REAL' LOVE. God's LOVE gives and it forgives, it GIVES and it FORGIVES. As this study progresses, it will become obvious that for each of God's 7 Spirits, all of mankind has their own version, not hardly what you would call a counterfeit, but let it suffice to say for now, 'a very poor substitute'. Using Love as an example, what mankind calls LOVE falls 'so far short' of God's LOVE, that there really is not much of a comparison. The LOVE of God 'cannot' fail whereas what men describe as love, can and quite often does. Only God's kind of LOVE enabled Jesus to LOVE and FORGIVE even those who drove the nails at Calvary. Attempt to forgive others were you in that same circumstance, using only the human kind of love, and you 'will' fail. If you give this some thought you should begin to see why 'THE CHURCH' has fallen 'so far' short of the GLORY of GOD.
Not only has He made this love available to us and 'desires' for us to walk in 'HIS LOVE but has COMMANDED us to do so. You may have forgotten by now, but let me remind you of our 'other' scripture reference Rev. 3:1 - “These things saith He that 'HATH' the 7 SPIRITS OF GOD". If your bible has the 'red-letter edition' then you should notice this verse is in RED. These words in RED denote words spoken by Jesus. Jesus had ALL 7 of God's 7 SPIRITS and he walked in ALL 7, and he lived by ALL 7 and Jesus was a doer of ALL 7. Jesus walked in ALL 7 of God's SPIRITS and that is exactly why he lived for 33 and ½ years in this sorry sin-sick world and yet did so without 'ever committing sin. Are you living under the assumption that Jesus was able to do this 'because' He was the SON of God? Is it possible that you've been taught 'by men that Jesus was half- God and half- man? In St. John 3:34 we can read the words of John the Baptist and he is speaking of Jesus. “For he whom God hath sent, speaketh the words of God: for God giveth 'NOT' the Spirit 'by measure' unto him.” What ever you do here, do NOT neglect the meaning given by this word 'NOT'. The real meaning here should be easily understood to mean 'without measure' or better yet, in full or complete measure'. This phrase 'NOT by measure', is a reference to exactly what this study is about. How would one go about measuring the Spirit of God?
That would be impossible as the Holy Spirit of God is like God himself, far, far 'too big' to measure. How big is God? The only understanding one might ever hope to gain, is to look at this subject, GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS, and see that each of God's 7 SPIRITS is 'a measure' and it takes 'all 7' to make the whole. We need to believe and to understand that although there is nothing more important than the TRUTH that God 'IS' Love, there are 6 other things that God 'IS', which are equally 'AS IMPORTANT' to us to believe and understand. As this article goes forward you will hopefully begin to understand 'why' the other 6 are so necessary. We will see from the Word that Jesus walked in all 7, not just 6, not just 5, but all seven, of God's Spirits. God's SPIRIT 'without measure'. This IS the reason Jesus was able to live 33 and ½ years without sin. Christians are commanded to walk 'even as' Jesus walked, 1st. John 2:6. Those two words 'even as' need to be understood NOT to mean 'just a little bit like'. 'Even as' means “exactly like”. If it required all 7 of God's Spirits for Jesus to walk sinless for a lifetime, how then, did His CHURCH get to believing that a Christian can't even go one day without sinning, and that we could ever hope to have any chance of accomplishing this, to walk as he walked, by using only mankind's poor imitation of love, rather than by walking in God's REAL THING?
How would anyone have any hope of walking 'even as' Jesus walked unless we do it 'exactly like' he (Jesus) did it? Most Christians have been deceived into believing that 'THE BIG HYPO' awaits their arrival in Heaven and 'then' they'll be able to 'walk even as' Jesus walked. In Rev. chapters 2 and 3, Jesus mentions 7 times about overcoming and or being overcome. Our best clue comes in chapter 3 and verse 21. Again, we can find that simple 2 word phrase 'even as'. Here he makes it very plain, that believers are to overcome 'even as' he (Jesus) overcame. Jesus overcame by walking 'always' in 'All 7 of God's 7 Spirits'. It is simple to see that he speaks here of 'our' doing this while we're still here on this earth. What will there be to 'overcome' after you reach heaven? SIN? There will be NO SIN in Heaven. Have a SIN that you love more than God? You will not be carrying that sin with you because you will 'NOT' be going. The 'only' alternative to 'overcoming', is to 'BE overcome'. There is 'nothing in between' and NO shades of gray. God's reward for those who are 'overcome' is spelled out very clearly in Rev. 3:5 - I don't know how good that reward sounds to you, but to me, NOT VERY. The days of “playing church” is now over, and the end is perhaps much closer than many would like to believe. Have you ever stopped to wonder why Jesus spent so much time in prayer? You can be certain that he was not praying for forgiveness for some sin he had committed. How about perhaps, that he prayed that His Father would enable him to walk 'always' in GOD'S SPIRIT OF LOVE. Would God answer someone's prayer for that? Apparently he did in Jesus' case. Would God answer that same prayer for someone other than Jesus, like for example, YOU? At least you could know that you would be praying for God's will to be done in your life. It's time to get serious about your eternity. It 'is' a matter of life or death. A great number of people have been deceived into believing they've got their ticket to Heaven, so they just go on thru life living like 'the rest of the world'. My suggestion to any who might find themselves in this spiritual condition, you might ask yourself 'why', you believe the things you believe. Are you believing 'what God said', or only, 'what your flesh wanted to hear'? Are you living your life based on 'what God said' or what some man (or woman) told you He said? Believing and becoming a DOER of God's Words, leads to LIFE eternal, whereas believing only the things your flesh 'wants to believe', can only end in destruction. This was 'proven' to be the Truth one day in the Garden of Eden, and it is still 'THE TRUTH' today. There are many dangers in 'refusing to believe' anything that God ever said. Jesus described this as “THE BROAD WAY”. The WORST danger in believing any lie, is that all too often, believers use this lack of KNOWLEDGE as an excuse by saying “I can't love like God loves or I can't forgive like God forgives.” Christians are COMMANDED to LOVE 'even as' God LOVE'S. Knowing the TRUTH contained in this article will make it possible for you 'to believe' that you 'CAN LOVE', YOU CAN FORGIVE, like God loves and forgives. The 'CHURCH' by in large sought to love and forgive one another using only mankind's version of love, and spend much of their time wondering why it doesn't work for them. Now you can stop wondering and do something about it. Understanding that God's LOVE is a Spirit and can 'ONLY' be received 'exactly as' any other thing is received from God. God's SPIRIT OF LOVE must be received 'exactly like' you received Jesus. By FAITH. This SPIRIT OF GOD'S LOVE cannot be seen with the natural eye, but it can be 'SEEN' when it is manifested in deed and in TRUTH. Probably the best example I can think of is this. Jesus became a 'doer of the Word' when he actually lay down his life for us. Not when he 'SAID' he was willing to do this, but when he actually 'DID' it. Without intending to get ahead of myself, I am reminded of something God said to me many years ago. In James 2:26 we read that “faith without works is dead” (partial). One day as I meditated this verse, God said very plainly, “that verse your meditating means, “Talk's cheap.” It still never ceases to amaze me how MUCH God can reveal in SO FEW WORDS. Had God only sent 'his Word' telling us just 'how much' he loved us, it would have only amounted to 'Love without works'. Had that been the case, no-one could have ever been absolutely certain of just 'HOW GREAT' GOD'S LOVE for us was. God then proceeded to 'prove' that his Love was 'not in word ONLY', but in deed and in TRUTH, when Jesus actually showed up at Calvary and actually died in our place. Anyone can 'say' that they love God, or that they love their neighbor as themselves, or even that Jesus is their Lord. Saying something does NOT make it so. Doing it 'does'.
It would probably prove beneficial here if I simply make the following statements. ALL living beings have characteristics. There are both physical and for lack of a better word, MORAL characteristics. For example, a man may be large or small, heavy or thin, dark or fair skinned, black hair and blue eyed or blonde headed with brown eyes. If that man were described accurately and 'completely' enough, you would probably be able to recognize him in a large crowd. This same man will also have MORAL characteristics. For examples sake, let's say he is KIND, COMPASSIONATE, LOVING, AND GENEROUS, etc.. (Even Satan has his own characteristics. He's deceitful, cunning, dishonest, selfish, and destructive). The question then becomes, if all living beings have characteristics, (and they do) why should it come as a surprise that God also must have his own characteristics? Not only does he have, but he has gone to great lengths that we might know and understand what God is really like. In Eph. 5:1 we can read a verse that should bring a very interesting question to mind. “Be ye therefore 'followers' of God as dear children.” You need consider that the word 'followers' as used here means 'to mimic' or 'to imitate'. Don't neglect to see the part which reads 'as dear children'. How many readers can remember watching his or her dad very closely and then doing their very best to imitate what they saw their father do? God expects no less of us. Have you ever observed your children doing this same thing? We are commanded to be 'imitators' of God and how can that be possible if we have not seen our Heavenly Father? Obviously, this is not speaking of having seen God with our physical eyes, but rather, by seeing and observing God in his Word. When ask by his disciples to “show us the Father”, Jesus' response was, “if you've seen me you have seen the Father” (partial). He's done everything possible to show us that he 'IS LOVE'. Only by seeing HOW JESUS WALKED in ALL 7 of God's spirits can we know God. If we will but 'take the time' to see how Jesus walked continually in ALL 7 of God's SPIRITS and then do our very best to walk 'as he walked', then not only is it possible for us to do so , but to realize God expects 'no less' of us. God will never require of anyone that they do something that is impossible for them to do. He always provides whatever is needed to obey Him. His will for the Body of Christ, his Bride, is for 'us to love', AS 'he loves', with 'his' love, the perfect LOVE, the God kind of LOVE. Having said all that, we can now proceed on to FAITH, the second of God's SEVEN SPIRITS.
THE SECOND
GOD'S SPIRIT OF FAITH
Next to the subject of LOVE, FAITH is probably the most taught and yet often misunderstood subject found in God's Word. Let's begin this subject by learning, that exactly as LOVE comes in two versions, so also does FAITH. There is 'the faith of a man', and there is also 'the FAITH of God'. First, let's look at the FAITH OF GOD. Hebrews 11:3 tells us that 'by it' (the FAITH of God) the worlds were framed. (created) It also uses the words, “by the Word of God,” Once again as usual, there is no better way to give understanding to anyone than by example. That's exactly why Jesus did this so often. Let's use for our example Gen. 1:3 - “And God said, let there be light: and there WAS Light.” Have you, by any chance, ever found yourself wondering just exactly 'where' that Light came from? The Light that came into being on that day, came out from 'the inside of God himself'. That Light came out contained in God's Words, “Light be”. This 'FAITH OF GOD' is a Spirit, and is 'contained' inside of every word ever spoken by God, and it 'IS' the substance from which that LIGHT was created. This word 'substance' means REAL, and the word REAL means permanent or forever. I know of no better example of this than the difference between LIGHT and DARKNESS. Before God spoke the words 'LIGHT BE', there was 'only' DARKNESS. Was that DARKNESS 'Real'? Keep in mind that I just made the statement that the word REAL means permanent or forever. What happened to that DARKNESS when LIGHT appeared? Where did it go? Could you have seen it leave? Did it disappear at the speed of LIGHT? Picture yourself if you will, in the darkest place you could ever imagine. You have a air-proof, light-proof container. Picture yourself holding this container directly in front of your eyes, and the ONLY thing you will see inside that container is DARKNESS. Strictly by feel, screw the air and watertight lid back on that container and then wrap that container securely in a thick, black, light-proof blanket. Next carry this blanket wrapped light proof container into the most well lit room you can find. Make certain that your eyes are NEVER off this container for one second. Carefully unwrap the black blanket and slowly remove the lid. Now look into this darkness-container and WHAT will you see? Will it still contain DARKNESS? Although this experiment may seem a little on the silly side, the beauty of it is, you don't actually have to conduct this experiment to find the answer. Why? Because you already know that answer. There will be only LIGHT inside. The simple truth is, LIGHT requires a 'presence' and DARKNESS requires only the ABSENSE of Light. LIGHT 'can' and 'always will' drive away darkness, but ALL THE DARKNESS in the universe can 'NEVER' DRIVE LIGHT away. Jesus gave his life that we all might have the right to choose whether to live in, and walk in, God's LIGHT or to remain in DARKNESS. As the old saying goes, I said all that to say this. Even though this substance called FAITH can 'NOT' be seen with one's natural eyes, it is REAL, it is permanent, it is forever. The reason for this can only be that FAITH is a SPIRIT and can 'NEVER' cease to exist. FAITH originated inside of God, came out of God, and came out contained in His WORDS. Exactly as God 'IS' Love, so also, God 'IS' 'FAITH'. Most Christians know the TRUTH which teaches us that “God speaks of things which be not as though they were.” On that day,even before God spoke
the words 'LIGHT BE', God saw exactly what LIGHT would look like. Not with his physical eyes, but he saw that LIGHT, inside of himself. He saw the earth no longer covered with darkness, but filled with LIGHT. God's Spirit watches over God's Word to perform it. Think about this for a minute. Here was God, God's Word and God's Spirit, yet until God's Words, which contained 'His SPIRIT OF FAITH' was released by His speaking those words, there was 'only' darkness. Faith is the 'spiritual substance' that originated in God himself. It is only released when spoken, and until it is released, it will produce nothing. Keep in mind we are speaking here 'only' of 'THE FAITH OF GOD', not the faith of a man. Now would probably be an excellent time to study a reference concerning 'man's faith'.
In Luke 22:31-32 Jesus tells Peter that “Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that 'thy faith fail not',” (partial) . Jesus spoke here of the 'faith of a man' (Peter's in this case) and He makes it 'very' clear, that 'the faith of a man' CAN FAIL. Two important things to notice here. As I said before, God's SPIRIT OF FAITH can 'never fail' and now we add the TRUTH which tells us that the faith of a man 'CAN'. Why is that? When God releases his Spirit of Faith, he NEVER DOUBTS, but believes (knows) that it MUST come to pass. He believes it before he sees it. Almost all of mankind on the other hand, are very subject to continually changing what they start out believing, whereas God NEVER changes in any way and this includes whatsoever thing he has released HIS FAITH to create or accomplish. We might ask ourselves next, well then , if a man's faith is so subject to failure, what possible purpose can it serve? If you will turn now to Romans 12:3, you can learn from God the answer to that question. This verse tells us that He has dealt to 'EVERY MAN' THE measure of faith. Always look for what is 'NOT' said, as well as that which is. Notice here, the word 'THE' in front of the word measure. God did NOT say 'a' measure of faith, but 'THE' measure. Had he said 'A' measure, then it would be possible that some men receive a larger or different measure of this mysterious thing called faith. He did not say however, 'a' measure, he said 'THE MEASURE'. To anyone having ears to hear, this should make it abundantly clear, that ALL men are given this 'SAME MEASURE'. So much for man's theory that some men are given 'more' faith than some others are given. Do not confuse this with the gifts of the Spirit as written in 1st.Corinthians 12:9. One of those gifts being specifically 'the gift of FAITH'. That is not what this scripture we just read in Romans 12:3 speaks of. You need to understand that the word 'faith' as used in this 12th chapter of Romans, means nothing more than this, it speaks of 'all men' having the same capacity (the same right of choice) to 'believe God' or 'NOT to believe God'. This is the 'faith of a man' that is possible to fail. This is the explanation as to why there are so many failures in the faith department in 'THE CHURCH'. If you understand nothing else, understand this. The FAITH of God never fails, your choice as to whether to continue believing or NOT, that can, and sad to say, often does. This 'faith of a man' means the right of choice, to believe or not believe God, is our right bought, paid for, and won by Jesus on Calvary's Cross. When Jesus' disciples ask him to give them more faith, Jesus' answer was, that this thing called faith, in only the smallest minute amount, would be sufficiently powerful enough to make 'nothing' impossible for them to do. You need to understand that 'here' Jesus is speaking of 'God's FAITH', not man's. For some strange reason this brings to mind a very old TV commercial. The add was for a men's hair dressing called Brylcreem, and their motto was, “a little dab will do you.” God's Spirit of FAITH is like that. It is not a matter of how much, but a matter of hearing it, choosing to believe it, receiving it, and then once planted refusing to dig it back up with your own tongue. Man's part of faith, is in their 'choosing' to believe God's Word, more than anything their natural senses or circumstances might be saying to them, as well as any doubts they might later have, which contradict anything and everything God has already promised in His WORD. Now, we should begin to see how God's SPIRIT OF FAITH and the faith of a man work together. God's SPIRIT OF FAITH, in exactly the same fashion as His SPIRIT OF LOVE, NEVER FAILS, it never ceases. What part then does man's faith play? Your faith for example. One more reference may well aid your understanding of how this works. In Hebrews 4:2, speaks of how that 'many' of those whom God delivered out of Egypt, died there in the wilderness. Why? Because of sin. That sin was 'UNBELIEF' and in verse 2, it tells us plainly that although the gospel was preached unto them, it profited them NOTHING, because they chose 'NOT' to believe. God's SPIRIT OF FAITH was contained in his words (the gospel preached unto them) and The SPIRIT OF FAITH was 'NOT' what failed. Those who died there in the wilderness, died because they 'refused' to mix 'their faith' (the faith of a man) with God's Spirit of FAITH. When believers (so-called) today turn FROM the faith, it's plainly speaking of their choosing NOT to believe, or to stop believing God's Promises, which they started out believing. A great lesson for all here. It's NOT, NOT, NOT what you 'start out believing', but what you 'END UP believing' that counts. Jesus had many, many, MANY who started out believing and following him, but they turned back. Does anyone truly believe that this is okay with God, and that you can turn away from God and still expect to receive God's promises? 2nd Peter 2:20 tells it as plainly as it could ever be told. Those who 'turn back' end up 'worse off' than they were at the beginning. Hey, in the beginning, before they received Jesus, where were they headed? To Heaven do you think? I do NOT think so and neither do you. Departing 'from the faith' means departing from God. You can only do that by 'your own choice', but know this, God will 'never' take that right of choice away from you. I have 'no doubts' that God will move both Heaven and Earth to bring you back to him, but 'BRING YOU BACK TO HIM 'against your will', 'no way, no how, 'NOT EVER'. All who have truly been born again by the Spirit of God, well, you got in by choice, and you CAN GET OUT the same way. Should you have ever found yourself beginning to swell up with pride, about just how pleasing to God you are, you might want to consider the following. Jesus was speaking one day to a group of Jews who proudly boasted of being children of Abraham. Jesus' reply was simply that God could take up stones and MAKE children like unto Abraham. The operative word here is 'MAKE'. Should pride of this kind ever find it's way into your mind and heart, just remember that God can take a rock and 'MAKE' one like Abraham. James 2:23 tells us that Abraham 'believed' God and it (his choosing to believe God) was imputed (counted) to him for righteousness. You should know that is also written that Abraham 'staggered NOT, at the promise. Abraham refused to 'stop believing' what God had promised him. How much do you think that pleased God? I am so glad you ask. It pleased God so much that when God created a place called Paradise, he called it ' “Abraham's Bosom”. God has never looked for anyone who he had to 'MAKE' LOVE him or to 'MAKE' BELIEVE him. He does however search this earth continually, for those who will 'CHOOSE' to love and believe him. God could have 'made' even Satan do that. He did NOT choose to do that, however, and he will NOT do that for you either. As my mother use to often say, after my brothers and I started getting a little 'too big' for whippings, “I may not still be able to 'MAKE' YOU MIND ME, but I can still make you 'wish you had'.” Should you be among those who await the 'BIG HYPO in the sky, you've got a long wait coming. God will NEVER 'make you' love him or believe him, but this one thing you can take to the bank. All who have chosen NOT to LOVE and BELIEVE God, well, the day will come, when they WILL 'wish' they had. The following two verses need to be clearly understood by everyone, 2nd Cor. 6:2, “Now is the accepted time, today is the day of Salvation.” and Hebrews 9:27, “It is appointed unto men 'once' (one time) to die, and 'after this' the judgment.” There are 'no' second chances after death. There is 'no' Purgatory. For all who end up in Hell, no amount of prayer will ever get them out. In Matthew 24:13 Jesus says it as plainly as it can be said. “He that endures 'until the end' shall be saved”. Does this mean as long as you start out believing God but then decide to turn back it's okay? Who could believe such a lie? Who do you suppose would want us to believe that we can turn our backs on God, and spit in God's face so to speak, and it won't matter? It mattered to God in the case of Israel and God does NOT change. He does not need to change. It's us who need changing. God has made it possible that we 'could' be changed into the image of His dear Son, and He did this at the awesome price of giving his only begotten Son. It may seem that I have digressed from the subject at hand. But not really. Our current subject was and still is God's SPIRIT OF FAITH. The FAITH OF GOD will never fail, it will never cease. The faith of men can and often 'will fail'. The thing I'm trying to get you to understand is, that the ONLY way that your 'faith' can fail, is to STOP believing what you started out believing. Just remember that if you 'CHOOSE' to stop believing that God's Words are the TRUTH, it does NOT and CAN NOT make them untrue. It will however keep them from working in your life. In exactly the same way, your choosing to believe a LIE is THE TRUTH, does NOT and can NOT, make it the TRUTH. In summary of this mysterious thing called FAITH, lets conclude by saying that FAITH is 'A SPIRIT', it is ONE of THE SEVEN SPIRITS of GOD, it comes to mankind contained in His, (God's) WORD. Anytime and every time God's Word is spoken, God's FAITH comes. Unless you choose to believe it, to receive it, and to live by it, it will profit you NOTHING. No man and no devil can 'MAKE' you choose to 'STOP BELIEVING'. Before we leave this subject of FAITH, the second Of God's SEVEN SPIRITS, we need 'always' to seek understanding from God, as to how 'each' of these 7 SPIRITS OF GOD are tied one to another. Gal. 5:6 tells us plainly that “FAITH works by LOVE,” (partial). Unless we are walking in, and a doer of, God's SPIRIT OF LOVE, his SPIRIT OF FAITH will NOT work in us either. Paul described FAITH without LOVE as 'tinkling cymbals and sounding brass'. Jesus said, 'if' you love me, you 'WILL' keep my commandments, (partial).” He did NOT say, 'when' you can, or 'if' you can. He said you WILL. Unless God's LOVE abides in you, which means simply that you walk in God's Spirit of LOVE, you have absolutely ZERO chances of walking in faith, living by faith, or enduring until the end. FAITH means 'believing what God said', and unless you love God more than you do yourself, you will NOT keep his commandments. And unless you keep his commandments you do NOT love God. I did not say that, Jesus did. You might say you do and convince others that you do, but God cannot be fooled. Exactly as FAITH without works is dead, so also is LOVE that is not being walked in. The only hope any man has of overcoming the things of this world, is by having, walking in, and 'BEING A DOER OF' God's Spirit of Love and his Spirit of FAITH. Jesus himself could 'NOT' have either. He knew that, and He has commanded us to overcome exactly 'the same way' (EVEN AS) he did it. Jesus walked 'always' in God's Spirit of LOVE and God's Spirit of FAITH. How foolish would someone have to be, to think that they have found some other way of doing so? If John 3:16 was the only thing we (the church) needed to know and understand about God, well, He (meaning God) would have had the apostle John write that on the back of a postage stamp and mailed it to the world. Those who TRULY love God will hunger to learn 'everything' possible about this God who loves us 'so much'. To those who view John 3:16 'only' as their ticket to an eternity of bliss in paradise, well, have you ever heard the phrase, 'in for a rude awakening'? There are 'MANY' today who call themselves by his name; who claim to love God more than they do themselves. At the same time they are saying this, their entire lives portray the fact that they do NOT believe what God said. God's WORD clearly teaches that no person can truly Love God and yet refuse to believe His Word. It's both God's SPIRIT OF Love and His Spirit of FAITH, working together, that make it possible for us to walk 'EVEN AS' Jesus walked. All who insist on believing this to be impossible, well, they have only proven that they do 'NOT' believe what God said, and having proven that, have also proven that they do 'NOT' love God.
THE THIRD
GOD'S SPIRIT OF HOPE
(A brief reminder here of what we began with in the first part of this article-
From Revelations 4:5
“And there were 7 lamps of fire burning before the throne, which ARE 'the SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD'.
The 'SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD' as used in this verse describe the 7 (meaning the complete) nature and characteristics of God.)
Now, on to the 3 rd. of God's SEVEN SPIRITS, HOPE.
God's SPIRIT OF HOPE can best be described as 'the picture God has painted 'for us' in 'EVERY' promise of God'.
Romans 15:13 calls God, 'the God 'OF' HOPE'. In exactly the same way that God is the God 'OF' LOVE, and the God 'OF' FAITH, so also is God 'the God of 'HOPE'.
Ephesians 2:12 describes man's condition before they receive Jesus, as those “having 'NO HOPE' and without God in this world.” All who are 'without God', are automatically 'WITHOUT HOPE, because God 'IS' the only HOPE there is for any of us. Now would be the perfect time for stating the difference between 'natural hope' (man's hope) and God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. Once again, an example will prove the best way of illustrating the difference between the two. Man's version is no more than 'wishing' at the very best. Let's say you were very seriously ill and the doctors gave you a 50/50 chance of survival. In that instance, you would have a 50% 'hope' of survival. In that circumstance, using only man's hope, you would not have one picture inside you, but 'two'. One of these pictures would portray you living and the other of your dying. Natural man's hope will never allow you to view the possibility of survival without showing you also the 'other' picture, the one showing you, 'that you don't 'make it'. The important thing to understand here, is that man's 'hope' is at it's very best, 99%, and at the very worst, ZERO 'hope'. Man's version of hope says for instance- “Do you think you're ever gonna get well? “I hope so.” As I've already said, that's only 'wishful thinking'. No power here to bring anything to pass.
Only by walking in God's 'SPIRIT OF LOVE' and 'SPIRIT OF FAITH, will it be possible for you to 'walk in' God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. No LOVE, no FAITH, and without both God's LOVE and FAITH, there can be no picture to 'lay hold' of. God's SPIRIT OF HOPE paints for you the picture, that is both essential and necessary for us to receive 'anything' from God.
At the risk of repeating myself, I will. Let's say you wanted to believe God for a home. You only desire however that this house be obtained 'by FAITH'.
Step one, you must believe that, because God loves you, he doesn't want you living under some highway overpass. You must 'first' believe, that because you 'know' God loves you, that he 'hears you', and he has invited you to make your petitions known to him.
So far, we have God, His WORD, God's SPIRIT OF LOVE, God's SPIRIT OF FAITH, and the HOLY SPIRIT, and lastly 'yourself'. Is it possible that there is still something missing from this picture? Ah, that word 'picture'.
Let's liken FAITH to the material (substance), God's Holy Spirit to the carpenter (builder). Question??? What is this house to look like? Without and unless you have 'the picture' in your heart, a picture which was painted inside of you by God's SPIRIT 'OF' HOPE, a picture that you can 'lay hold on' and refuse to let it go, you are just as likely to end up with a six-legged giraffe or a polka-dotted hippo, as you are with a house. God's HOPE is the 'blueprint' by which the Holy Spirit will build 'your house' using God's FAITH as the substance.
Hopefully you will recall the example of God creating LIGHT. God saw 'exactly' what that LIGHT would look like before it came into existence. I said 'before' not after.
God's SPIRIT OF HOPE creates for you 'the picture' of whatever you are believing God for. God's SPIRIT OF HOPE is the 'painter' that paints the 'picture' for you of what your house will look like. No HOPE, no picture. One, no picture to hold on too, and you will never stand long enough for God's SPIRIT OF FAITH to produce anything. Two, let go of that picture, and you will find yourself continually changing that which you started out believing God for.
Jesus walked continually in God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. Acts 2:26 refers to a prophecy which King David spoke many years before Jesus was even born. God had David speak these words, words that would 'later' be spoken by Jesus himself. The part you do NOT want to miss is this- “moreover, also my flesh shall rest in 'HOPE' (partial).” Jesus went to Calvary believing that God would raise him from the dead. Jesus had this promise from God and he had seen the 'picture' of God raising him from the dead. Hebrews 6:18 – (speaking of believers) “to lay hold upon the 'HOPE' set before us (partial).” Believers are also commanded to do the same exact thing that Jesus did. Lay hold on God's SPIRIT OF 'HOPE' and 'NEVER' let it go. Jesus laid hold of God's SPIRIT OF HOPE and he had no intention of letting go. Had Jesus ever let go of that picture, God would NOT have been able to raise Jesus from the dead. God's HOPE 'IS' a Spirit, because it originated in God, and it came OUT of God, contained in God's Word.
Are you sure and certain you're going to Heaven? If your answer is “boy I hope so”, you have laid hold on the wrong version of hope. Man's hope can only ever add up to, 'maybe so and maybe NO'. The only 'right answer' to this question is YES. How do you know? BECAUSE GOD PROMISED it 'IN HIS WORD'.
Walking in God's SPIRIT OF HOPE will allow you to 'KNOW' so, not just to “hope so”. Love requires Faith. Faith will not work without Love, and 'Faith' can only produce or create the picture that God's 'Hope' has painted inside of your spirit.
LOVE, FAITH and HOPE- the first three of Gods' Seven Spirits. Hopefully by now, you can begin to understand how ALL of God's Spirits are inter-twined and inter-dependent on one another.
One of the very best verses in God's Word is found in Romans 4: 18 . In this one single verse you can see the difference between man's 'natural hope' and God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. “Who (speaking of Abraham) 'against hope' believed in hope, (partial)”. This might well at first glance, seem to be a contradiction within itself. That would be true unless, and until, you understand that in this one verse you will find both man's hope and God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. The first word hope which follows the word 'against', speaks of 'natural hope' (man's hope). The only picture his (Abraham's) natural hope painted showed him he had 'NO HOPE'. That picture illustrated for Abraham every reason he could imagine that there was 'no way possible' for God to bring to pass the promise God had already made to Abraham. God had already spoken unto Abraham, “I have (already) made thee 'the father of many nations', (partial).” Natural hope 'told' Abraham he had not even ONE child, much less a multitude of descendants. Natural hope said to Abraham, “Hey old man, you're far too old to be having kids.” Guess what else? Man's hope told Abraham that there was 'NO' hope.
Now, what about the part which says, “He, (Abraham) believed in 'HOPE'”? What exactly was this 'HOPE' that he chose to believe in? The HOPE that Abraham chose to believe was nothing less than God's SPIRIT OF HOPE. God's SPIRIT OF HOPE was 'contained inside' of God's promise made to Abraham. Had Abraham chosen to believe the picture that his natural hope painted for him, he would have 'NEVER' fathered the first child, much less a multitude.
Please allow me to simplify, what this verse is actually saying. Abraham looked at both pictures and he 'CHOSE' to believe the picture that God's HOPE painted. “He HOPED (with God's HOPE) 'against' man's hope.” Which HOPE contained God's POWER? Abraham could just as easily went the other way, by believing what 'man's hope' showed him. You can 'know' which one he chose, because you KNOW 'the rest of the story'. Exactly as God's SPIRIT OF LOVE and His SPIRIT OF FAITH never fail, so also can God's SPIRIT OF HOPE never fail. All 3 are Spirits, all 3 came out of the inside of God, and all 3 come to us 'ONLY' contained in God's Word. Exactly as is true with God's LOVE and FAITH, God has given us the right to chose 'who' and 'what' we will believe and which picture we will lay hold on, and refuse to ever let go.
It might prove useful to believers to remember, that there is always 'someone' who loves to meddle with the picture that God's SPIRIT OF HOPE has painted inside of you. I'm hoping that you will know exactly who I am speaking of. Satan is the great counterfeiter, the great impostor, and the great impersonator. He will 'steal' your picture 'if you let him'.
In exactly the same way that no one can stop you from walking in God's LOVE, God's FAITH, or God's Spirit of HOPE, (no one that is, but 'YOU'), the devil can't and God won't. Never allow yourself to believe that it was one of God's Spirits which failed. For too many centuries now, God's CHURCH has been deceived into believing it is impossible for anyone to walk 'EVEN AS' Jesus walked, even though it is written in His Word to do so. Our great God has provided every man, woman, boy, and girl, ALL things and everything, that he provided for Jesus. Attempting to 'walk like Jesus' using only mankind's poor imitations of God's REAL THINGS, such as LOVE, FAITH, and HOPE, is a certain guarantee of failure.
Believing, receiving, and walking in THE REAL THING, has the power to make failure an impossibility.
THE FOURTH
GOD'S SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
The MOST simple definition of 'WHAT' RIGHTEOUSNESS is, can be found in Isaiah 45:19 - “I the Lord speak RIGHTEOUSNESS, 'I' DECLARE things that are 'RIGHT'” If you read 'ONLY' what God says here, you will have no problem understanding exactly what God's RIGHTEOUSNESS is. God's RIGHTEOUSNESS is what God says it is, NOT what some man tells you it is or thinks it is. Who does this verse tell us that this right belongs to? It very plainly says, that this right belongs to God and God alone. Keeping this TRUTH firmly in your mind, it should be a simple thing to compare God's RIGHTEOUSNESS to what THE CHURCH, by and in large, teaches righteousness to mean. The most commonly taught and preached meaning for this word is, “to be in RIGHT-STANDING with God.” That is true, KIND OF, but not quite right either. The simple truth is, this puts the CART before the HORSE. The CART here representing our RIGHT-STANDING with God, but the HORSE is the power of God's SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS which can bring us 'to' that place of 'being' in right-standing with God. Since God alone is the creator of all things, He 'alone' gets to make the rules. What He says is right, is RIGHT.
As is the case with all of God's 7 Spirits, mankind has it's own version of each. Let's learn what God thinks about “man's righteousness”.
We can find this answer in Isaiah 64: 6 - “But we are 'all' as an unclean thing, and 'ALL OUR RIGHTEOUSNESSES are, as 'filthy rags'.” Now you have two kinds of RIGHTEOUSNESS, God's and man's. The RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD is 'what GOD' has declared to be RIGHT, and the 'righteousness of men' amounts only to what they WANT it to be.
There are more opinions than there are people and surprise, surprise, God has an opinion also. Take for example Mark 11: 15-17 and Matt. 21: 12-13 – Read and study these verses for yourself. In short, the MONEYCHANGERS had worked themselves into God's House under the 'guise' of offering a service unto God's people. Keep in mind, that ALL things God has declared to be RIGHT is RIGHTEOUSNESS, and ALL else is UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS. There is nothing else in-between. Basing your opinion only on Jesus' re-action and subsequent ACTIONS, would you think that this practice of “turning God's House into a 'HOUSE OF MERCHANDISE” would be in God's eyes RIGHTEOUSNESS OR UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS? This should take but a moment.
Anyone who might be reading this must, of necessity, be doing so on the Internet. See for yourself. Visit as many Christian (so-called at least) web-sites as it might take to convince yourself there are still moneychangers in our day. The vast majority, and I do mean VAST majority, are nothing less than a place for the selling of products. Books, tapes, music, etc.. Most web-sites are labeled with the tag 'FREE'. One would suppose in this case FREE must refer to “Click, it's FREE to get here.” If you do click you will more than likely find something that looks akin to a Middle Eastern Bazaar. Keep in mind that all this is done under the guise of 'helping you' to learn of and about God, or to worship God, or to grow in God.
The TRUTH is, you will never find this practice in God's Word. Except of course, when God's RIGHTEOUSNESS was turned into UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS as we just read about in Matthew and Mark. Do your best to remember the following simple phrase. “If it's FROM GOD, it ain't' for sale and if it's FOR SALE, it ain't' from God.”
Many will be offended by those words, but unless and until someone can show me chapter and verse where Jesus or any other man of God committed this act of UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS, I will never believe this to be anything other than UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS, an abomination unto God. Unfortunately, all who refuse to agree with God's opinion about this will one day learn, and perhaps too late, that God's opinion is the 'ONLY' one that matters.
Is it possible that there is more to this thing called 'RIGHTEOUSNESS' than just saying, “I have received Gods' righteousness by FAITH?” Once again, the TRUTH, but not the WHOLE TRUTH. Should we consider the possibility, that after we receive it by faith, there might be something more required of us?
1st John 2:29 - “If you know that he (speaking of Jesus) 'IS' RIGHTEOUS, then ye know (should also know) that everyone that DOETH RIGHTEOUSNESS(what God says or declares) is born of him.” What does this tell us about this thing called RIGHTEOUSNESS? Exactly as it is true of God's LOVE, FAITH, and HOPE, righteousness which is not being 'walked in' is nothing more than just another word.
All who claim to be in right standing with God while walking continually in UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS (well, the only word which comes to mind) are LIARS.
We received God's SPIRIT OF LOVE by hearing his words which contained His LOVE, but then unless we 'walk in' God's LOVE, that LOVE is in vain and without profit. By in large, the CHURCH today are doers of “mans' righteousness” and not Gods' SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. We've already seen God's opinion of what man's righteousness is worth.
Jesus was a doer of God's RIGHTEOUSNESS, not man's. Let's remember one more time, that God has commanded His church to walk 'EVEN AS' Jesus walked (1st.John 2: 6). All should be willing to agree that this would be impossible, if we are only walking in man's righteousness, rather than God's. There should then, remain no question as to which RIGHTEOUSNESS God has commanded us to walk in. Always remember that God never ask anyone to do something that was impossible for them to do. Every commandment of God comes with ALL things necessary to enable you, to keep that commandment. He has commanded us to be doers of His RIGHTEOUSNESS, not man's. He has provided us with his SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. This 4th Of God's 7 SPIRITS can only be received, as all the other 6 must be received. This 'SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS' is contained in God's Word which tells us what righteousness is. It can only be received by FAITH, but unless you THEN walk in and become a doer of HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, you will end up being only a doer of UN-righteousness. Mankind needed no help in becoming a doer of unrighteousness.
Being a doer of unrighteousness is not second nature to mankind, it is our FIRST NATURE. There is no in-between, there is no neutral ground here. All will walk in either one or the other.
God has made ALL seven of HIS SPIRITS available to all men. Jesus gave his life to make this possible. Shortly before Calvary, Jesus said that his life was “his (own) to pick up or to lay down, and that no man could take it from him” (paraphrase). And so it is for us today.
God has provided His seven SPIRITS and commanded us 'to walk in' THEM. Not some worthless man's imitation. No man or devil can stop you from doing so. Believing that someone else stopped you from doing so, well, that excuse will not wash with God, because it will not WASH with His WORD. The final decision rest with you, and you alone. Many long years ago, God said to the the nation of Israel, Deut. 30: 19 - “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore CHOOSE LIFE that both thou and thy seed may live.” God never changes. Included in everything God has provided for us, he always reveals to us the only WISE choice, but when all is said and done, the final decision rest with us. And so it is with GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS. All seven can be received and walked in by ANYONE who will choose to do so. No one can stop you from doing so, except Y-O-U.
THE FIFTH
GOD'S SPIRIT OF JUDGMENT
The first and perhaps the 'most' important thing to know about God's JUDGMENT, is that it is a TWO-EDGED SWORD. When most people hear this word, especially when following the word GOD'S, their first reaction is to shudder in fear and trembling. Most Christians picture an angry God and a burning Hell. That is, of course, unless you realize that God's JUDGMENT works two ways, not just ONE. Even in man's “sorry by comparison version(of judgment)”, this is true. Judgment can just as easily go 'in your FAVOR' as it can against you.
A large majority of 'church-going Christians' are quick to quote the words of Jesus when he said, “Judge NOT, and you shall not be judged, (partial).” This word as used here, means 'Judgment unto condemnation'. Were it true that this is the only way this word is ever used, that would be all well and good. This is not, however, all there is to it.
In St.John 7:24 we find Jesus saying, “Judge not according to appearance, but judge RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT” . The next question then becomes, are we to judge, or are we 'NOT to judge'?
For God's answer to this question, we need first acknowledge that if this answer does exist, it will be found 'only' in God's Word. In St. John 5: 22 Jesus says, “For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed ALL Judgment unto the Son.” In John 12: 47 Jesus said, “If any man hears my words, and believe not, I judge(condemn) him not: for
'I came NOT to judge the world', but to save the world.” Thus far, we've seen the Father (God) will judge (condemn) no man, and that Jesus will judge (condemn) no man. Understand that the word judge as used here only means to 'condemn'. Who then 'will judge (condemn) the world'? In the very next verse we will find that answer is not WHO, but 'WHAT'. Verse 48 - “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth NOT my words, hath (already) one that judgeth him: 'THE WORD THAT I HAVE SPOKEN', the same (words) shall judge (condemn) him in the last day.” In Psalms 149:9 we find the scripture , “To execute (speak) upon them(the world) the Judgment WRITTEN: this honor have 'ALL' his saints.” Between the last two verses you should begin to understand why neither God himself, or Jesus will have to judge anyone. All of mankind has 'ALREADY BEEN JUDGED'. If you are a Christian and you say to someone who isn't, “No man can come to God but (except) by Jesus,” you have just executed God's RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT. This word 'executed' as used here simply means 'to speak'. Should that person reject God's Word that you have just spoken (executed), and if they continue to reject those same words until their death, they have in fact, judged themselves.
God's Judgment (condemnation) for all who reject Jesus is already WRITTEN. It can NOT be changed. The Judgment for all who make this wrong decision, is forever settled in Heaven and God will NEVER change it.
As previously mentioned, all of God's 7 SPIRITS are tied and related one to another. A wonderful example of how God's SPIRIT of JUDGMENT is related to God's SPIRIT of RIGHTEOUSNESS can be found in Isaiah 26: 9 - “for 'when' (and only when) thy (God's) judgments are in the earth, then (and only then) the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness' (partial)”.
How could there be a reward for being a 'DOER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS', without and unless there were also a JUDGEMENT against those who chose rather to be doers of UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS? To understand how God's JUDGEMENT cuts both ways, let's say you speak the words found in John 3:16. In this single verse, you will see God's JUDGMENT 'for' those who do not reject Jesus, but receive Jesus. God's JUDGMENT written here promises 'ETERNAL LIFE'.
The following statement may require a few moments of thought on your part. God has many commandments where as Satan has only ONE. God has 'already written' the rewards for those who keep His commandments, and the PENALTY for those who don't. Satan needs only ONE because his only 'commandment' is, “DON'T KEEP GOD'S COMMANDMENTS.”
As has been the case with everything that is 'OF GOD', men have substituted their own versions of God's 'REAL' thing. Not only is man's judgment subject to failure, it will likely be wrong more times than right. God's JUDGMENT on the other hand is always fair and just. God's JUDGMENT tells every man beforehand the reward for 'rejection' of his Words, as well as the reward for believing, receiving and becoming a 'doer of' his Words. Every person will be judged by 'their OWN' words. How much MORE FAIR could God be? Remember also, Jesus did tell us to “JUDGE RIGHTEOUS judgment”, but how many will you find who even 'know' what that means? When you hear Jesus saying “JUDGE RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT”, do you hear that as a suggestion or as a commandment?
Let's say, for an example's sake, you have a brother or sister in Christ, someone who at some point in their life became a BELIEVER. Now let's say that same person has been deceived into believing they can live their life loving and wallowing in sin and are now doing so without shame, guilt or remorse. This fallen brother's or sister's conscience has been seared by sin, as 'with a hot iron'. Would God have you to do something? Anything? Might God send you to that person to condemn them? Hello!! He didn't even send Jesus to do that. Might He though, send you to that person, walking in God's SPIRIT OF LOVE, to remind them of God's Judgment? Before you go, remember God's JUDGMENT has already been written and can NOT be changed and God is sending you, not to condemn or accuse them, but to speak His Words in the hope this person might perhaps repent and receive God's forgiveness. The 'spirit' of CONDEMNATION is OF Satan, and not 'of God'. I believe you already know the answer to the following question. What if God directs you to do this very thing and you 'refuse' to go? Will this be okay with God? Will your Heavenly Father hold you blameless? (If by chance you have any trouble answering this last question, allow me to suggest your reading Ezekiel 3: 20-21 .)
Now back to the subject at hand. As is true of all seven of God's SPIRITS, God's Judgment is a SPIRIT. It came 'out of God' and it came out contained 'IN GOD'S WORDS'. They are mighty, they are powerful, they are ALIVE. His Words are all these things because they are SPIRIT and they are LIFE.
Going on a mission like the one just discussed, but going 'only' in your OWN power, you WILL fail. Go walking in God's SPIRITS of LOVE, FAITH, HOPE, RIGHTEOUSNESS, and JUDGMENT, and you will have every reason to believe your mission will SUCCEED.
God has often sent His prophets to warn men and even entire nations. Some heeded God's warnings and repented, some did not. I have no doubt God knew beforehand what the outcome would be in each and every case. He warned them anyway. We are to do 'likewise'. Doing this God's Way leaves their decision entirely up to them. Not to God, and certainly not to you. Which judgment they will receive, will be by their decision, their choice. Thank God that He does 'not' hold us responsible for whatever that decision might be. He will however, hold each and every one of us responsible for doing “whatsoever he commands us do”.
God is FAIR, He is JUST, and last but not least, he has provided us with EVERYTHING necessary to be 'DOERS OF' whatsoever he commands us to do. He has made it possible for us (the church) to walk 'EVEN AS' Jesus walked. He did this by making available the EXACT same SEVEN SPIRITS of GOD, that Jesus walked in. If God's CHURCH is to ever have any hope of being 'without spot or blemish' and of ever being 'pleasing unto God', like Jesus was, this is the 'ONLY' way. You have two choices. Believe it, receive it and do it, or continue to believe your 'FAIRY TALE' about the BIG HYPO in the sky, in the great by and by. I feel led to warn you, that if you choose the latter, you best be prepared for the greatest disappointment of your entire life.
THE SIXTH
GOD'S SPIRIT OF KNOWLEDGE
There are few words in the English language which encompass so broad a spectrum of meanings as this word KNOWLEDGE does. The shortest and most simple meaning would be, 'TO KNOW'.
As has proven to be the case with every one of God's Spirits so far, this time will prove to be no different. There is man's version of knowledge and God's.
Let's touch very lightly on what the knowledge of men might include. There is 'head knowledge', book knowledge, as well as knowledge which comes only from experience. The one common weakness of all these, is they are all subject to change. Once upon a time, men thought this earth to be flat. They believed it to be square and with corners. They believed that the SUN revolved around the earth rather than the other way around. They considered this to be 100% true, they considered this to be knowledge. Guess what? They were wrong. One would think they might have looked up one day and noticed that the Moon and the Sun were round. Why they chose to think the Earth was somehow different I would not venture to guess. The only purpose in my using this illustration is this. These things which men considered to be 'KNOWLEDGE' proved to be wrong. That knowledge ceased, as anything that is subject to change or might later be proven to be wrong. Does this sound like something you might want to hang your eternity on? To me it does not. But then, that's just me.
Remember that the shortest and most simple definition we started out with, was 'TO KNOW'. Using the above examples, men did NOT 'KNOW', they only 'thought' they knew. To summarize man's 'knowledge' let me just say, it is subject to change, it is subject to be proven wrong, it is therefore, subject to become only yesterdays foolishness.
Having said all that, we can now move on ahead to 'GOD'S SPIRIT OF KNOWLEDGE'. As has already proven to be the case with the first 5 SPIRITS OF GOD, so it is also with God's SPIRIT OF KNOWLEDGE. Because GOD'S KNOWLEDGE is 'SPIRIT' and came OUT OF GOD, it is eternal; it will NEVER change, pass away or cease. God will NOT learn something new tomorrow that he does NOT KNOW today. He was 'ALL KNOWLEDGE' from 'the beginning'.
God has made HIS KNOWLEDGE available to all of mankind. The first step necessary was to receive Jesus. Using YOU as our example, let's say you KNOW (I mean in the 'God's Real Knowledge' kind of way) that Jesus lives inside of you. Now ask yourself the following question. “How hard should it be from there to believing that 'ALL' things are now possible for me?” After all, you is NOT 'just you' anymore. Jesus said He was in the Father and the Father was in Him. Then if Jesus is in you, then the Father is also. It's no longer just you trying to do the impossible. It's you'uns. (How's that for a made up word?)
I'm not speaking theoretically, or hypothetically. The CHURCH in the earth today has had about all the theories and man's knowledge that it can stand.
By now, I've lost count of how many times God's Word found in 1st. John 2:6 has been quoted. I suppose I could just go back and do a count. I could, but I won't. I'll just quote it again. “He that saith (says) he abideth in HIM (Jesus) ought (should) himself walk, EVEN AS, He (Jesus) walked.” Have you decided yet to agree with God that this must be possible? Or, are you still in the 'but I can't stage'? I can say this with absolutely certainty. It IS NOT A GOOD IDEA to 'refuse to believe' anything God says. That, too, is a 'spirit'. It is called 'the spirit of unbelief', it is one of Satan's spirits, and it is nothing less, than REBELLION AGAINST GOD.
I had thought previously to include the following segment in the 7th and final chapter of this article BUT, as I keep hearing the words, “there is no time like the present”, I will do so NOW.
These words are found in St. John chapter 17, and as it turns out, this entire chapter is a prayer that Jesus prayed. This complete chapter is well worth many hours of prayer and meditation. From verse 6 thru 19 Jesus is praying for his disciples and in verse 20, He includes 'US', (Thank you Jesus) the entire Body of Christ, in his prayer. “Neither pray I for these alone (His disciples), but for THEM also ( I believe He's talking about us) which shall believe on me through their(His disciples) word(s).” What did Jesus pray for us? “That they ALL may be one; as thou Father art 'in me', and I 'in thee', that they also may be ONE 'in us'.” Why? “(so) that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” Think about this for a minute. I just mentioned this but anything this good is worth repeating. Jesus just said that He was 'IN GOD' and God was 'IN HIM'. Now in verse 23 – Jesus goes on to say, “ I (Jesus) in 'them' and thou in me, (partial).”
Jesus was in God ( He just said that He was) and the Father (God) was in Jesus, (which He was) and then lastly but not least, Jesus said that He was in us. Well now! Tell me one more time that you can't 'walk EVEN AS Jesus walked'. If God himself is inside of YOU, then His Word is inside of YOU. If His Word is inside of YOU, then His nature (meaning that ALL 7 of His SPIRITS) are inside of YOU. If you continue to insist you CAN'T, then of course you CAN'T. You CAN'T here really can only mean you won't. There is a very great likelihood that this is because you've been taught your whole Christian life that you CAN'T “walk even as he walked.”
How about you start believing what God said instead of what some PHD or Dr. of theology straight out of some cemetery (I mean seminary) said? God has commanded us to believe His Words, to be doers of His Words and not the words of some mental midget because he has some Capitol letters behind his name.
Any man (or woman) who comes saying God can't and you can't, was not sent by God. One would think that the CHURCH would have figured out by now that man's way is NOT working. It will 'never' work. Had that been possible, God would not have had to send Jesus. How sad this is to say, but by in large, The CHURCH that Jesus built has insisted on doing it man's way. Rather than marching to the tune of 'Power In the Blood', they have tried to walk like Jesus while singing, “I did it 'my' way.” That song may have served Frank Sinatra well, but as a battle song, it's spiritual suicide. Why anyone would choose to walk in man's knowledge when God has made available to the entire Body of Christ, His KNOWLEDGE, I do not know. I can not fathom, but I do KNOW that we have all been guilty of it. The TRUTH is, if you have received Jesus, and he abides in YOU, then so also is God's Word inside of You and me, and IF God's Words abide (lives) in you, then you CAN walk 'EVEN AS' Jesus walked. You need to understand that God's Word abiding in you does not speak of abiding in your mind, but in your HEART(Spirit). They can only abide in the hearts of those who are DOERS OF THAT WORD.
I have not one single doubt that Satan can quote the entire Bible from Genesis 1:1 to the last verse of chapter 22 of Revelations, every jot and every tittle. The problem for him is that he refuses to be a 'DOER of THE WORD'.
God has revealed to us the 'difference' between man's sorry substitute and God's SPIRIT OF KNOWLEDGE. This is not something He just put there yesterday or today. These things have been there for almost 2000 years.
In 2nd Peter 3: 9 we can read “God is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is LONGSUFFERING towards us,” (partial) . As for myself, I think God has waited long enough. There will be some who will receive the words written here as TRUTH and there will be MANY, who will not. All who choose to believe these words, will do their very best to become doers of 'walking like Jesus walked'. In Jesus, God has given us everything that God is and ALL that He has. He has once again, however, left the final decision up to each and every person. God will 'never' make that decision for you and neither can I, or anyone else.
THE SEVENTH
(and final)
GOD'S SPIRIT OF WISDOM
Before we turn into the home stretch and on to the seventh of God's 7 SPIRITS, I believe it will prove well worth our time for a quick summary of things covered so far.
As mentioned at the beginning, when studying GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS each and every one could fill an entire book. That is most likely an understatement. We started this entire article with a scripture found in Revelations 4: 5. In this scene set in Heaven, John saw “seven lamps OF FIRE BURNING” before the throne, which are 'THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD'.” One might easily assume that these SEVEN LAMPS are 'THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD'. Upon closer examination of God's Word this will prove to be an incorrect assumption. Anytime you can NOT find God's answer in His WORD, you might settle for an assumption and from there jump to a conclusion. Every conclusion reached in this manner will be wrong 100% of the time. The only safe course of action in this situation, is to allow God's Holy Spirit to lead and guide your search.
God has included in His Word 'HIS WAY' of our gaining understanding of His Word. This TRUTH is spelled out very clearly in Isaiah 28: 10 - “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” This word precept as used here, means 'the understanding of a thought or idea'. The word 'line' as used here means scripture upon scripture.
I had no plans of including the following in this article, but what I had thought to be the plan, as it turns out, was not God's plan. Since I have long ago determined that God is God and I'm not, His plan is the ONLY RIGHT PLAN. Only one scripture will be necessary to bring us back to Isaiah 28: 10. It is found in 2nd Peter 1: 20 - “Knowing this first, that NO prophecy (of the scripture) is of any (PRIVATE) INTERPRETATION.” Notice that I have enclosed the word (private) in parenthesis. Should you care to study out this word 'private', you will find it to mean INDIVIDUAL. This word private (individual) has almost always been taught to mean an 'individual' person. This is of course true, because it's not okay with God that each and every person take any of His Words to mean only what they 'want' them to mean. There is more here than meets the eye. Now look at this word 'individual' not as meaning a person, but as 'INDIVIDUALLY'; the meaning of which is no INDIVIDUAL scripture can be interpreted (understood) unless it is studied 'in the light' of other scriptures. Now you should begin to understand the meaning of the words, “line upon line, and also, here a little, and there a little.” The 'here a little' and 'there a little' scriptures are often found far, far apart.
For a quick example, let us say you find one or even several verses in the Old Testament on a given subject and they make little or no sense whatsoever, regardless of how long you look and ponder. But if you allow God's Spirit to lead and guide you, He WILL lead you to the right 'THERE A LITTLE' and Wham! Now the verse or verses you could not understand before, make perfect sense. That word WILL is in capitol letters because Jesus promised that He(the Holy Spirit) WILL lead and guide you into ALL the truth.
If you allow some man who is NOT led by God's Spirit to direct you to the wrong 'THERE A LITTLE', you will still not understand. This was NOT a mistake on God's part. He does NOT make mistakes. God has HIS WORD written this way on purpose. You might wonder why. God doesn't mind you asking. Had He minded, He would not have put the answer in His WORD. God has promised “Seek and you WILL find (partial)”.
God is seeking those who hunger and thirst after Him enough to be willing to seek His answers. He is separating those who are 'willing to seek' from those who aren't. A great many 'Christians' are much too busy with life to have time to seek God's answer to anything. A football game tonight, a 'must see' movie another day, and perhaps even a night out on the town for Mom and Dad so they can get away from the kids for a while. The solution for far too many is to pay some man to seek God FOR them.
Now that we've taken that little detour, we can get back to where we were. We were discussing how easy it would be to assume that the phrase “seven lamps of fire burning before the throne” is saying the 7 lamps are the 7 SPIRITS OF GOD. An easy assumption to make but not a correct one. It's not the 7 lamps which are the 7 SPIRITS OF GOD, but the fire burning in the 7 lamps. (Assumptions can only lead you to some man's opinion, NEVER God's. Only God's Holy Spirit can and will lead you to the correct 'THERE A LITTLE'.)
In Revelations 1: 20 we read the following words, (I believe this is Jesus speaking to John) “The SEVEN candlesticks which thou saw are the SEVEN churches(partial) .”
It will also prove helpful to backup to verse 13 where you will find that the first thing John saw was Jesus standing in the midst of 7 golden candlesticks. In Revelations 11: 4 we find that same word 'candlesticks'. As you will soon see, this word chosen by the translators as candlestick(s), would lead one to believe that this speaks of some type of candle holder. If you will follow along a couple of minutes longer, this mystery can and will be solved. Not by me, because I'm not that smart. God alone is, and if you will take with me one more little trip to another 'THERE A LITTLE', this will all come to make perfect sense.
Turn now to Zechariah 4:2 – This verse tells us exactly what Zechariah, a prophet of God, saw in his vision. The angel who appeared to Zachariah ask him what he saw. Zechariah answered, “I have looked, behold 'a candlestick' all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his '7 lamps' thereon,” (partial). Even in this one verse alone, the use of this word 'candlestick' might well seem confusing. We should now begin to come up with some very interesting questions. Why would a golden candlestick have upon it, 7 oil lamps rather than 7 candles?? Great questions deserve great answers. First, a flat out statement. What Zechariah saw and what John saw were both, the exact same thing. Zechariah saw 'a golden candlestick' with 7 oil lamps on it. It did not have on it candles, but oil lamps. John saw 7 lamps of fire burning before God's throne. (In the other references to what John saw, it describes in one verse 'a' golden candlestick, in another 'two' candlesticks, and in the other 7 golden candlesticks.)
The first thing you need to understand is this word translated as candlestick(s), turns out not to be the best choice of words. Literally what John saw was a 'golden lamp stand', and it did not have on it candles, but 7 oil lamps, exactly what Zechariah saw. Many words used in God's Word are chosen from several possible choices (in some cases 'many' choices). Why the translators chose the word 'candlestick' rather than the much better choice, LAMPSTAND, I do not know. Perhaps because the words golden candlestick sounds more beautiful. This word 'candlestick' conjures up an image of something which has on it candles. Please note that in NOT one of our four scriptures containing the word candlestick(s) do you find the mention of candles. The answer to this mystery is simple. In all four verses the much better choice would have been to use the word, LAMPSTAND. A lampstand does not have on it candles but oil LAMPS. Hopefully, you will recall the words of Jesus when he prayed what we now call The Lord's Prayer. In that prayer He included the words, “thy will be done 'on earth' as it IS in Heaven.”
If the 7 lamps John saw before God's throne in Heaven represent the 7 churches (and they do) and they are burning with the 7 SPIRITS OF GOD (which they are), could one, or should one, be led to believe that this is how God sees His CHURCH? Were this not so, it would 'NEVER' be possible that this could EVER come to pass. The TRUTH is, God allowed John to see the picture (painted by God's SPIRIT of HOPE) exactly as God sees HIS CHURCH on the inside of Himself. God sees His CHURCH, the CHURCH that Jesus built, as being filled with believers who are walking in the 'SEVEN SPIRITS' of God. He has laid hold on that picture and will NEVER let it go. Should it not also then be possible to believe this IS God's WILL for HIS CHURCH? Is it so hard to believe that God would desire that the Body of Christ in the Earth be full of His LOVE, and be 'walking in HIS LOVE'? Jesus did pray for God's will to be done 'IN EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN'. How about God's RIGHTEOUSNESS? Do you believe that God's will for His CHURCH is that it be filled with 'His RIGHTEOUSNESS', and not man's sorry imitation? We could continue right down the list of all six of GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS that we've covered so far and I for one have no problem believing it is His will. Do you?
All seven of God's Spirits were and still are 'IN' Jesus, and now Jesus is 'IN' you. If Jesus is in you, then so also, are ALL seven of God's Spirits. As mentioned previously, God's Seven Spirits can NEVER fail because they are Spirit. SPIRITS are eternal.
At the beginning of this article I stated that the SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD reveal to us God's NATURE. His complete NATURE. In 2nd Peter 1: 3-4 we find the following words. “According as His (God's) DIVINE power has given 'unto us' ALL THINGS that pertain to LIFE and GODLINESS, thru the knowledge of Him that (who) hath called US(THE CHURCH) to glory and virtue.” , verse 4 - “Whereby are given unto US(THE CHURCH), exceeding great and precious promises(these promises are found 'only' in God's Word), that 'BY THESE' Ye(YOU) might be(become) PARTAKERS OF THE (this) 'DIVINE NATURE'(the NATURE of God Himself), having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
Gal. 5: 16- “Walk in the Spirit and you will 'NOT' fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Most who have read this far will probably know this speaks of God's Holy Spirit. One might 'assume' that this has nothing to do with walking in the 7 SPIRITS OF GOD. As mentioned previously, to assume anything is a very dangerous practice. Just answer for yourself the following question and then we can go on. Wouldn't the HOLY SPIRIT have the exact same NATURE as God has?
We could camp right here in these two previous verses, but we won't.
I do want to point out several key points however. Please take careful notice of the two words, “DIVINE NATURE”. This word DIVINE means 'Godlike'. Put this together with the word NATURE and you can see these two verses are telling us that God has provided US, HIS CHURCH, with everything necessary not only to have, but to 'walk in', His NATURE.
Hopefully, we have already learned that walking in 'man's nature' just won't get 'er done. Our Heavenly Father has gone to great lengths that we might know and understand exactly what He is like.
Let's quickly re-visit Acts 2:28. Once again, these are words that David (speaking as a prophet) spoke long before Jesus was born. Jesus spoke these same words before going to Calvary. “Thou hast made 'KNOWN' to me the ways of life,” (partial). The 'ways of life' to which Jesus refers , are nothing less than what this entire article is about. Jesus walked continually in ALL 7 of God's SPIRITS. These are the ways of LIFE.
He watched His Father and did ONLY what He saw His Father do. In John 5: 19 Jesus said, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but(except) what He see(s) the Father do: for whatsoever He (God) doeth, these things doeth the Son likewise.” What might you suppose Jesus observed His Heavenly Father doing? Did Jesus ever see His Father doing unrighteousness? I wouldn't think so. Did Jesus ever observe God being anything but LOVE? Again I don't think so. Is it even possible that Jesus EVER watched as His Father 'staggered in unbelief', or scratched His head saying “I don't know the answer to that question”? We could go thru all 6 of God's SPIRITS we've covered so far, and the answers would all be the same. No, No, No , No, No, and NO. Did Jesus ever see the LOVE that God 'IS' and then decide He could not be LOVE like The Father IS LOVE? Did Jesus ever say to His Father, “I CAN'T?” Jesus lived by and walked in the DIVINE NATURE of God. Why was He able to? Because He was the Son of God? By now, you should know beforehand that once again, the answer is NO. Jesus lived like He did 'because' he believed, received and walked in these very same great and precious promises which God, by His GRACE, has provided for you and I. The SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD are included in those promises. Not only are they included but are essential and necessary. God promised Jesus that He would raise Jesus from death to ETERNAL LIFE. Don't we have that very same promise? Anything you can see with your physical eyes is subject to error. Would you like to see God like Jesus saw God? Then look in THE WORD at how Jesus walked and then walk 'EVEN AS' He(Jesus) walked. That's why Jesus said, “if you've seen me you've seen the Father,” (partial). Anything and everything you can see Jesus 'doing' in the Word will be exactly the same as what God himself would do in the same situation.
Now, at long last, we can proceed onward to the seventh and final of GOD'S SEVEN SPIRITS.
THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM
The shortest and most simple definition of this word 'WISDOM' is --- 'TO BE WISE'.
As you might have guessed by now, there are two kinds of wisdom. As with all of God's Seven Spirits, mankind has it's own version.
We can learn very quickly just how much value there is in the wisdom of men. In James 3: 15 we learn God's opinion of man's wisdom. “This 'wisdom' descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.” If you look carefully at this verse you might also find another truth. This verse leads one to believe that there also must be wisdom which comes from above. Would you care to venture a guess as to who's WISDOM might come from above? If you guessed THE WISDOM OF GOD you would be right. If you didn't, the answer is still 'THE WISDOM OF GOD'.
There are fine distinctions between KNOWLEDGE and WISDOM. The greatest difference between the two is WISDOM will show you when to apply what KNOWLEDGE and how.
We can find some great examples of this in ECCLESIASTES 3: 1-8. We will include only enough to give understanding. Verse 7, “there is a time to keep silent and a time to speak” (partial); verse 2 - “a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which was planted;(partial) ; verse 4 – “a time to weep and a time to laugh ”(partial). Using verse 7 as our example , it is the spirit of WISDOM which reveals to you the time to keep silent or to speak. Let's learn more about the
seven spirits of GOD by a careful examination of the illustration below.
Early on in this study I ask the question, “How would one go about measuring God?” The question was answered that God was far too 'BIG' to measure by any means other than looking at His NATURE and KNOWING and UNDERSTANDING WHAT His SEVEN SPIRITS ARE. We count each of the 7 things God IS as SEVEN equal parts, but also take into consideration that it takes ALL seven to make the WHOLE. Leave out any one of the seven and He would no longer be the God that He IS.
Look back now at the above illustration. Our first consideration is the largest circle represents how big God is. Note that circle number 1, is labeled LOVE. The next (2) is labeled FAITH, and so on and so on, until we reach circle number 7 where you will find the word WISDOM.
The first and most important thing to see about this illustration is as follows. It is 'impossible' to gain entrance into circle number 2 (FAITH) except you come 'from' circle number 1 (LOVE). Unless you are walking in and a doer of God's LOVE, it is impossible to walk in God's FAITH, because Faith won't work without Love. Before it is possible for anyone to walk in God's SPIRIT OF HOPE, you must first be a doer of BOTH God's LOVE and FAITH. Our main point to learn here is that to walk in any of God's 7 SPIRITS, you must be walking in each and every one of those which have come before.
For the sake of time and space let's just move on ahead to the 6th of God's Seven Spirits, KNOWLEDGE. Unless and until you are walking in and a doer of ALL of the first 5, it would be impossible to come to the Knowledge of God and even more impossible to become a doer of same. How could anyone be a doer of something they neither understand or have what it takes to understand? (As if trying to write when you have never heard of or learned the alphabet.)
The most simple thing I can say about God's Seventh and final Spirit, THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM, is that it is the sum total of 'ALL OF THE FIRST SIX'. I feel it very necessary at this time to remind you that the largest circle, pictures God in His entirety.
I ask at this time that you scroll back to the illustration and see if you see one key ingredient missing. Go ahead, I'll wait.
Are you back? Did you find what was missing? Just in case you didn't see it, I'll just show you the correct answer by adding to the previous one.
The part missing in the first illustration is:
THERE was
NO DOOR.
JESUS is that DOOR.
He is the ONLY DOOR.
Our ONLY way of entering into that biggest circle is to be IN JESUS and HIM to be IN YOU.
Multitudes in 'the church' will tell you that Jesus lives inside them.
The life they live tells a different story.
A lost and dying world looks on and can see NO DIFFERENCE between them and 'the church'.
God has commanded ALL believers to walk EVEN AS
JESUS WALKED. MANY claim to be believers but refuse to believe what God said.
Whether or not one person will ever believe and receive the words of this article, I do NOT know. That is neither my responsibility or decision to make. You may decide to believe some, none, or ALL of the words written here. God's judgment for whatever decision you do make, well, that's already WRITTEN and can NEVER be changed. Which JUDGMENT you receive will be based on Your own Words. That decision rests entirely upon YOU.
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