Aug 14th, 2004: MANIFESTING CHRIST, THE NARROW WAY.

PART #9

THE STAFF AND SWORD MINISTRY

August, 2004

m"IFESTING CHRIST THE NARROW AWAY

by Nancy-TONI Youngbrandt

As Chuck-JOHNEL and I were praying one evening, the Holy Spirit gave me a question to address in these "Manifesting Christ" articles. The question is this:

What is the difference between what is commonly taught and accepted as our Christian walk in comparison to "manifesting Christ"?

In other words, is it a matter of terminology and they are really the same thing or is there a difference? Well, I believe there is actually a big difference but to see it, one has to look past the outside "trappings" of the average Christian experience and look down to the root or very

heart of that walk to see if it is Christ Jesus or self that is found there. If Christ is not at the heart of all we say, do and are, then the rest will be vanity and serve only self.

It is interesting that in Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus speaks of a broad way and a narrow way.

He tells us, "Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad

is the wa y , that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there at: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Now, it could be said that the "broad way" here is speaking of the world and Christianit y as a whole as the narrow way but I don't believe Jesus is saying that.

I believe Jesus is talking to those of His Church Body and that He is telling us there is a broadly taught and accepted way that in the end leads to destruction and then there is a narrow, less known way that leads to life within the Church as a whole. I believe this is why in a few verses later Jesus is warning His people,

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will sa y unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy

name? And in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will 1 profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquit y ." ( Jesus in Matthew 7:21-23)

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Clearly this is speaking of those who professed to have Jesus as Lord and even did things in His Name and yet in the end their way only led to destruction as Jesus said that He never knew them. The way these people were on was obviously not the "narrow way" for it didn't

lead them to life with Christ even though they did `spiritual things' in Jesus' Name.

The same thing can be seen in Luke l 3:24-27. Here Jesus tells again,

"Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for man y , I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and bath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saving, e Lord, Lord, open unto us; and He shall answer and sat unto you, I know you not y whence ye are: Then shall ,y e begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy y presence, and thou past taught in our streets. But He shall sa , I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity."

Once again it is clear to see that these were people are like many of those in the Church Body today. They are like those who have had communion, who have sat in the Lord's presence at prayer meetings and listened to wonderful, Spirit-filled teachings as surely those people sat in Jesus' presence as He ate and drank and shared the teachings of God with them.

So, just what is the difference between the "broad way" and "narrow way"? Why isn't it enough to do works in Jesus' Name like prophesying, casting out devils and many other wonderful things? Well, it all comes down to KNOWING Jesus and to come to Know Him, it means we must "deny our self, take up our cross and follow Him." (Luke 9:23) You see.

The main difference between what is commonly taught or the broad way versus knowing Jesus or taking the narrow way is that the first one lets the individual keep his or her self-life intact, while the other leads to denying that self-life and letting it die out with Christ in its place. In the end, one approach keeps God and Jesus at a distance and outside of one's heart while the other seeks God and Jesus with and through the heart. One is an outward way or surface approach and the other an inward walk. It is this inward walk to Jesus that is the strait, narrow way-

THE OLD TESTAMENT/COVENANT COMPARED TO THE NEW The difference between the broad and narrow way, or the outward walk as compared to an inward walk, is really the same as the difference between the Old Testament or Old Covenant man had with God and the New Testament or New Covenant God made with man through Jesus Christ. You see, the people in Moses's day were given the same opportunity we face today. At that time, here was Moses going before God and being filled with His Spirit and his presence so much so that his face literally shone white with the Glory of God. It was then God's intent that all of the people would be able tp have this same relationship with God and

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T THE [LLD TESTAMENT/COVENAN COMPARED TO THE NEW continued that all have opportunity to be prophets of God. Unfortunately, when the people saw Moses and the Spirit of God upon him, instead of embracing the opportunity to partake in that relationship with God, they ran from it and asked Moses to cover his face. What happened was that inwardly they didn't want to let God into their hearts to let Him deal with the sin that lied therein so instead they told Moses, "You tell us what God wants us to do and we'll do it." Right there a wall came up between the people and God and so came the Law and a Covenant or Testament between man (male & female) and God where if man kept God's Laws, He would bless them. Unfortunately, the people didn't take into account that because of the sin within them, the people could not perfectly fulfill the law and so it was doomed from the start. However, God knew this and used the Old Covenant!Testament to show mankind that they could not be righteous and holy apart from God and without letting Him into the heart, soul and innermost being. Mankind was in a fallen state and God used the Law to reveal

it to us.

However, God, in His infinite wisdom, had a plan to redeem mankind. He would send His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins and in doing so, God would not only make a New Covenant/Testament with mankind but He made sure He covered all the bases Himself.

God said, "My Laws still apply but now lIll fulfill those laws for you through My Son, Jesus Christ." Through this act, God not only made a New Covenant with mankind but He fulfilled it as well so that it would last and never be broken. God opened a way for His people to once again come unto Him personally and directly, with their sin under the Blood of Jesus, to be filled with the glory and righteousness of God as He intended so long ago.

THE BROAD WAY The way I see this as applying to us today is that much of what is commonly taught and accepted in a broad way in the Church today here in America is one based more on works and an outward appearance of good without truly dealing with the sin within. Like those in Moses' day, the approach is one of looking to a spiritual person to "tell us what to do and we'll do" it" instead of coming to know Jesus intimately and personally individually.

To give you an idea of what I mean, here are some of the commonly taught and accepted indications of a `Christian' walk.

1. The person is a `good' person and lives a clean life.

2. That person doesn't swear, drink or smoke cigarettes.

3. That person eats `correctly' — depending on the belief system of the individual or church that can range from observing the Jewish dietary laws or eating vegetarian.

4. That person observes the feast days.

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THE BROAD WAY con tinued 5. That person does good works such as caring for the sick, poor, needy, widows, etc.

6. That person has visions, dreams, gives prophetic words or words of knowledge.

7. That person experiences good feelings in prayer time, receives exciting revelation andlor moves in the gifts of the Spirit.

8_ That person casts out demons and/ or speaks in tongues.

These all look good and certainly manifesting Christ will involve doing many of the things listed here and yet none of these are an indication of a deeper walk in Christ or that the individual actually knows Jesus, is doing the Will of God and is filled with the Love of God in his or her heart. These things should all, if anything, be the fruit or end result of a knowing Jesus and the Father's Will for you personally, rather than considered to be a replacement for that relationship. As a matter of fact, all of these works and experiences let the individual keep his or her self-life intact which is just the opposite of Jesus' call to us to deny our self, take up our cross and follow Him. This approach is very much an outward or surface walk.

For example, "being a good person" or living a "clean" life. The trap of this kind of thinking is that it goes by appearance and gives the self-life much it could take credit for. A person could make the willful effort of not drinking, swearing or smoking (as an example) or even eating a certain way, but these things of themselves do not make us holy. It is all too easy to think that works' such as these make one holy and still not know Jesus. This kind of approach will also actually feed the self-life and self-pride if one has done it out of their own self-effort by leading us to think that we are at least doing something right.

The inward and narrow way to attain such a Godly life is when Jesus comes into a your heart and you have no desire for the things not of God and the Holy Spirit gently convicts you to cease from a certain activity. You just lose interest in the things that are not of God and you begin to just desire more and more the things that are of God and that are pleasing to Him. When you live a certain way or do certain things out of a pure love for God, then the fruit will be of God and not of self.

The same goes for caring for the sick, the homeless, or the poor and such. None of these things add to our righteousness before God and can also be done out of our own power, our own will and our own strength. All these things can be done with our self-nature intact and can even work to feed our self-love if not done for the right reasons and from the right source — a selfless love of God. If it is self that is the root of these acts, then like with trees, the fruit will be bad or, at the least, mixed with good and bad fruit, but if the root is God — then you can count on good things coming of them.

Even seeing visions, having prophetic dreams, prophesying or receiving words of knowledge are not to be a measure of one's Christian walk either. These are gifts from God (when they are genuinely from Him) which He decides when we receive and when we don't.

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THE BROAD WAY continued The dangerous side to relying on these gifts too much is that once again self can get all too easily involved. Self can even move to tr y to imitate God to you to give you what you crave if you're not careful. The deceptiveness of our self-nature is not to be underestimated. It is all too easy when manifesting the gifts of the Spirit for any length of time to begin to be filled with more self-love as our self-nature would love to take credit or feel quite proud of itself for being so good' as to be able to receive such revelations and experiences. For this reason, it is to be left to God to decide when we receive visions, prophecy or whatever else we may experience in Him. When He is left in control then His Will will be served and self will have little to credit for.

Another misconception out there is that if you're walking right' with God, only good things will happen and there will be no troubles or difficulties. Those with this view have forgotten that Jesus spoke not only of denying your self but then taking up your cross which of itself indicates trials and hardships. The person whose self-life is intact will praise God and expect good things to come his or her way all the time and that God will bless everything they want or do. But then when troubles do come or God doesn't do what they wanted, then they are angry with God or become full of doubt and confusion as the reality flies in the face of what they believed. The problem with this approach is that with self at the helm of their lives, the trials and difficulties sent our way that should bring us closer to Jesus and should strengthen us in our trust of Him, just ends up having a devastating effect which in the end can lead people away from God instead of bringing them closer to Him. How, you may ask? Well, it's like in the parable of the sower in Mark 4:16-17 where Jesus explains that there were some who hear the Word of God and receive it with gladness but because they didn't receive it into their hearts (and kept it outside of themselves), when afflictions or persecution came, they were offended. In Luke 8:13 Jesus explains that these actually "fell away". So again, this broad, outward way has a bad end as many can be away from God by not allowing Jesus into their hearts and beginning their inward journey which would have put them on a path toward God instead of away from Him.

THE INWARD, NARROW WAY The inward or narrow way now comes down to letting God and Jesus Christ into one's heart and seeking the kingdom of God that is found from within. To do this, self and sin must be removed so that an open, strait and narrow way is made to Christ Jesus so that we might abide in His presence and have a living relationship with Him and, through Him, God the Father.

In the book, THE BEST OF FENELON , it shares what is considered the basic doctrine' of Francois Fenelon, one of the early teachers of the inward way. It was broken down this way:

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THE INWARD, NARROW WAY continued

1.) The provisions of the Gospel are such, that Christians may gain entire victory over their sinful propensities, and live in constant and accepted communion with God. 2.) Persons are in this state when they love God with all their heart - in other words, with pure or unselfish love.

3.) There have beer Christians, though probably few in number, who, so far as can be decided by our imperfect judgment, have reached this state. And it is the duty of all, encouraged by the ample provision that is made, to strive to attain it.

At first glance this is so direct and to the point, that it may be easy to miss the totality of what is being said. It is so simple and yet so deep that few have attained to it over all the ages in the vast Church body so let's take a look at what is being said more thoroughly.

Of course, here the real provision of the Gospel' that makes any inward way possible to God is Jesus Christ for through Him, His death for our sins and His resurrection, we can now come to the Father and have the opportunity of living in a constant and acceptable (to God) communion with Him. Another way to put it is that through Christ we have the opportunity to abide in His presence continually in our spirit, which is the same as communing with God and Jesus Christ.

However, this abiding relationship with God the Father will not come about without first putting our sinful nature under the Blood of Christ and thereby gaining or obtaining victory over our sinful propensities — which is an absolute necessity if one is going to have constant communion with God. The outward way WILL NOTbring this about. It doesn't get you any closer to that victory because when self is allowed to stay on the throne seat of your heart, then there is no room for God. The inward way is truly the only way to God. To truly seek the kingdom of God from

within by denying our self-life, taking up our cross and following Jesus for Him alone, and to seek to do God's Will out of love for God and not for a self-centered or selfish reason.

The second point in Fenelon's doctrine' is that this state can only be reached when the individual loves God with ALL of their heart with a pure and unselfish love. This is right out of John 14:23 when Jesus said, "If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. " And this pure

and unselfish love once again goes back to the heart and allowing Jesus into one's heart to abide there. Going back to the parable of the sower in Luke 8, there Jesus makes the

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THE INWARD, NARROW WAY continued_ connection between being able to keep God's words and the condition of one's heart. Inverse 15 Jesus explains, "But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. " In turn, this honest and good heart is made honest and good by having Jesus Christ at the center of it.

The difficult part for many is that when Jesus first moves into our heart, it's like a new tenant taking over a filthy building that has been left to its own devices for way too long — it needs a great deal of cleaning up and that mean getting rid of A LOT OF GARBAGE? This part can be painful but in the end, it is an absolute necessity. It could be said that the broad way would pretty much leave this broken down building intact but the narrow way means it

has to go through a renovation and remodeling — and maybe some demolition. Certainly, this inward way is not an easy path nor is it the most popular but then even Jesus called it a strait or narrow way. However, as Fenelon said, just because it seems like few Christians have entered into the fullness of this way, it does not mean that we are not to strive to attain it. In fact, Fenelon says it is our duty — the duty of all of us — to go our limit and trust God for the rest.

IT IS A TRANSITION Lest anyone now feel somehow condemned or disheartened because they had not sought the "inward" way sooner in their lives, I believe that to some degree or another, we all pretty much start out with an outward walk — one based on self and what we want from God. We all start out accepting Jesus as out Savior but it takes a little longer to understand and accept what it means to have Him as Lord. Having Jesus as Lord comes with learning to yield and surrender to Him as we grow and mature in our spiritual walk. Likewise, at first God deals with us as if we were a child (no matter what our physical age is) and then later, as time progresses. He then begins to deal with us as though we were a strong man. This is what the Apostle Paul was expressing when he wrote in I Corinthians 13:11, When I was a child, 1 spake as a child, I understood as a child, 1 Thought as a child: but when I became u man, I put away childish things. " It would be easy to think that Paul was speaking of being a physical child and then becoming a physical man but I believe he was speaking of a spiritual transition rather than a physical one ... and one we all must make if we want to know Jesus and to be a manifest son of God. It seems to me that so much of what is focused on and prized in the main Church Body keeps the body ever in a childish state. After all, Jesus told us in Luke 17:20-21 the following: "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation ... behold, the kingdom of God is within you."

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IT IS A TRANSITION continued And yet, how often behavior is encouraged that causes a believer to seek the kingdom of God through observation — through the outward senses. How is this done? Well, I found a sort of list in Michael Molinos's book, The Spiritual Guide , that I would like to draw from. In there he speaks of the outward senses, rational thought, emotions as they relate to "how you feel, what you think, your logical conclusions, outward circumstances, blessings, an onslaught of problems, confusions, doubt, poverty, poor health, wealth, good friends, an abundance of enemies," and so on. I took what he wrote to mean that if you use any of these feelings, thoughts or situations to determine if you are walking right with God or not, then you are

going by observation and not by the Spirit of God within you. For example, just because a person has been hit with an onslaught of problems, it cannot be observed by those problems if that person is walking right with God or not. Some of the most saintly, God-centered people have endured great hardship and illness while those less close to God seem to live a relatively trouble-free life. It could also be the other way around as well, so one just cannot judge by outward appearance or observation.

As Michael Molinos goes on to say, "You must realize that thing which is deepest within you is pure spirit. It does not feel in the same way that emotions feel. That which goes on inside the spirit is not outwardly perceptible as are those things which go on in the more outward portion of your being." This too, is part of the transition we are called to make.

He then goes on to explain, "It is clear then if we are to be pressed into that which is more akin to the nature of the Lord (and not our own nature) we must pursue an inward walk. In doing this you will have to leave the guidance of your life to the Lord and expect Him to be your light in dry places, and even in dark places."

This inward walk is truly the beginning of a closer walk with Jesus. However, it is not obtained without a price and part of that price is giving up our self-life and all of our crutches and laziness that has held us back so far, Instead, now is the time to "draw near to our Lord, to follow His internal inspiration, to receive His Divine influence in your inmost center, to reverence Him with your will, to cast away imaginations, concepts and ideas which occur during prayer." (Quoting Michael Molinos) As for this final suggestion, "to cast away imaginations, concepts and ideas which occur during prayer" -- this is good advice especially until one has solidly developed a relationship with Jesus and has come to recognize when one's own soul is conjw ing up some imaginative vision, concept or idea in an effort to feed your own self-nature. Until one has matured and proven out within one's being when it is Jesus or the Spirit of God communicating within them and when it is one's own soul, it is best not to trust what comes too easily in a time of prayer. Rather, it is best to give all desire to see, know or experience anything in prayer and leave it in God's hands to decide if and when that is to change.

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PREPARATION FOR MANIFESTING CHRIST The main reason I have spent this much time looking at the difference between the outward and inward walk is because if any of us even hope to one day be found worthy through Christ Jesus to manifest Christ and operate as a manifest son of God, then we must allow the Spirit of God to prepare us first in our heart and our spirit. We must have a vessel worthy and able to manifest Christ or it won't last. After all, it was Jesus who taught us, "No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. Neither do men put new

wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved "(Matthew 9:16-17) In the early 1980's, Chuck-JGHNEL found this to truly be the case as Jesus manifested in him for a period of time. Chuck-JOHNEL was at a house meeting one evening when he found himself drawn up to Heaven while his body was still on earth in the meeting. And while he was there, Jesus was literally walking and talking through Cluck-JGHNEL's body to members of the group. Chuck-JOHNEL said that he just seemed to be watching all this from a distance and yet he heard all that went on. This closeness and oneness with Jesus stayed with him for some days after the meeting but eventually it was lost as Chuck-JGHNEL saw that his self-life and carnality were still intact and so like an old bottle, a part of that old nature weakened and broke — it couldn't hold the new wine. So, if he couldn't hold onto it, would any of the rest of us fare any better? I doubt it. No, the only answer is Jesus Christ and being made clean from sin by His Blood, denying our self and following Him. It is in doing this that God will complete His work in us. We don't do it — God does!

Just look at what God tells us in Ezekiel 36:25-27:

"Their will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give y you, and a new spirit will 1 ut within ou: and I will take away the stony heart out y of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put m spirit within and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Isn't this great?! Here's the New Covenant promise all laid out for us. Here God is making us clean of our filthiness and idols (which He did through Jesus Christ paying the price for our sins) and then God is giving us a new heart, not unlike being given a new vessel. It explains that God will take away the old heart and give us a whole new one and then, with that done, He puts a new spirit within us as well! He puts a new wine into the new wineskin or vessel.

It is then, with the Spirit of God within us, that we at last walk in His statutes, keep His judgments and do them as He intended us to all along!

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THE EXCELLENCY OF THE POWER There is no doubt in reading the Scriptures that Jesus gave authority and power to His people. In Luke 10:19 Jesus tells us, "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the even:y: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. " Then in Matthew 10:1 we see that when Jesus had called His twelve disciples unto Him, "... He gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. "

Or even better yet, we have what Jesus said in John 14;12 — " Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall lie do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. " And, of course, the empowerment to do all these things comes from Jesus and the power of His Name as Jesus said in John 14:13-14 — "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. I f ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it " So why is it then that there are those who call Jesus, "Lord, Lord", and prophesy in His Name, cast out devils and done many wonderful works in His Name only to be called workers of iniquity? This doesn't seem possible, does it?

Actually it does only if you realize that the Name of Jesus has a power all its own and it can be used for God's purposes or misused for self-serving purposes instead. This is why we pray on our daily prayer sheet what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7, "... that the excellency f off the power ma y be of'God and not o us ." We are praying that the power and authority we are operating with be wholly of God, for His Will and His purposes, and not of us, not of our

will and not out of our selfish nature.

For any Christian to become a manifest son of God, they must not only accept the power and authority that comes with it but also the responsibility for the power Christ has given us to the Glor y of God and so tlis Will is on earth as it is in Heaven. Jesus did nothing except what the Father showed Him to do so we too niust first and foremost have a close relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ so that we too will do only what the Father shows us to do.

I like the example in Scripture of what took place when Jesus was told that Lazarus was sick and his sisters wanted Him to come right away to help further illustrate my point. It is clear that Jesus knew God's mind, will and purpose in this case because upon hearing that

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THE EXCELLENCY OF THE POWER continued Lazarus was sick, Jesus said, "The sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby, "(John 11:4) Jesus then proceeded to remain where He was for 2 more days before going to the home of Lazarus and his sisters. Even then, Jesus knew what was happening and that Lazarus had actually already died physically and He told the disciples, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep." (John 11:11) The disciples, however, didn't quite get what Jesus meant and thought He was saying that Lazarus was just napping when he was actually dead so Jesus tells them plainly that Lazarus is dead.

The story then moves along to Jesus arriving at the house of Lazarus and his sisters, Martha and Mary. He is met by Martha, who right away informs Jesus that if He had gotten there sooner, her brother would not have died. No doubt in her pain and anguish she couldn't see that God may have something else in mind here so Jesus questions her if she believes He is the resurrection and the life and that he that believes in Him, though he were dead, yet shall he live and whosoever lives and believes in Him shall not die. Martha responds that she does believe that He is the Christ, the Son of God, who should come into the world.

Later Jesus is found by Mary, the other sister, who also confronts Jesus with the statement, "Lord, if thou hadst been here, ,nv brother- had not died. "(John 11:32) There were also others among those weeping who said, "Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blindd, have caused that even this man should not have died. " ( Vs 37) It just seems like it never occurred to anyone to seek God's Will in this matter but rather all that seems to be expressed is what the people wanted and what would have been more expedient to fix the situation. It is during this time that Jesus is groaning in His Spirit and even weeping but I wonder if it isn't because these were His friends and faithful followers and yet even they, still didn't see Him fully for who He was and didn't have the faith that God was in control of the situation. They were so close to Jesus physically and yet so far from Him and seeing who He was spiritually, it must have caused Him to groan in His Spirit.

Well, as we all know, Jesus finally went out to the tomb of Lazarus and told them to take away the stone from the grave. What took place next I find interesting because it says that Jesus knew the Father heard Him but that for the sake of the people so that they may believe God had sent Him, He spoke for Lazarus to come forth. In other words, Jesus already had the answer to His prayer and He had the authority from God to bring it about, and He knew it but for the benefit of those around Him (and for us too, I imagine), He spoke His authority out loud even though it really wasn't necessary.

You see, real power and authority come from God and when it does, we don't need to try to add to it or help it along by loud crying or passionate exclamations. After all, the power is of God and not of us. This reminds me of a man of God 1 read about once that said the

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THE EXCELLENCY OF THE POWER continued anointing of God was on him and his words so strongly that he had to deliberately tone himself down. He found that if he came on strong or got to passionate when he spoke, people couldn't receive or retain what he said by the Spirit of God. If they fainted, that was no good because then they couldn't hear what was being said that God wanted them to hear.

Anyway, the main reason for sharing the story of Lazarus is to point out the need to have constant communion with God through Jesus Christ, and out of that relationship, the importance of knowing God's Will and when to responsibly use the authority we have through Christ. How many of us would have just run to Lazarus's side when we first heard our dear friend was sick to pray for his healing? Would any of us had been close enough to God to know that God had a greater purpose at work and that involved Lazarus dying and then being resurrected?

Now I realize this is an unusual example but I believe the principle is the same for us as Christians — that we need to know God's Will in a matter before we act. One modern-day example of why this is important is a story Chuck-JOHNEL tells of an Italian Grandma. In one of the stories he heard about her, Chuck-JOL-I EL was told that one evening, in the middle of a house prayer meeting, she stood and looked up, saying, "Jesus is coming for met" — and then dropped dead on the floor. The minister in charge of the meeting then panicked a little, thinking to himself that he couldn't have people dropping dead in the prayer meetings so he prayed, in Jesus' Name, for her to be resurrected. With that, she was back in her body and she sat up, turned to the minister and said, "Pastor Eddie, you gotta big nose!" After that she wouldn't even speak to Pastor Eddie for about a month. Well, the Lord must have been working on Grandma during that time because one day she came to Pastor Eddie with a big pot of spaghetti to make amends. Later, at another prayer meeting, the same thing happened to Grandma but this time she was gone to Heaven for good. Father Eddie didn't interfere this time — he had learned his lesson.

The point is that we are here to do God's Will and we as part of the Body of Christ need to know what that Will is and to be surrendered to it so that we too will do nothing except what the Father shows us. And this kind of relationship can only come about by entering through the strait gate and the traveling the narrow way to Christ Jesus.

The question you'll have to ask yourself is - Can I avoid pain by avoiding my joy?

The truth is — no! If you avoid your . joy (God the Father and Jesus Christ), then all you'll be left with is pain. However, if you pursue your joy, then any pain along the way will be worth it in the end. As Jesus said in Matthew 10:39, `;.. he that loseth his life for my sake shalt find it " Or as Paul wrote in Philippians 1:21, For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.