I. Fresh Outpouring
I believe we've entered into a time of fresh outpouring of God's Spirit. God is looking for people to pour into, to engage in prayer and those who will not compromise but release His words "that are like a hammer" with boldness.
Make every effort to seek the Lord and put yourself in position to be a part of what He is doing at this time. He truly wants to bring an awakening in the hearts of His people. He wants to stir a fresh awe in His wonders and bring a strong demonstration of His power like we've not seen.
"Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech—unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away... Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:12-13;17-18)
There is no replacement for the anointing of God's Spirit and the weight of His glory. Man may be able to put on a show but only God's Spirit can cause you to glow. Glow? Absolutely! Moses glowed with the glory of God's presence and that was inferior to what God has given to us in Jesus Christ.
II. Another Level of Glory
We go from one level of glory to the next level of glory. I had a dream some time ago where I was shown a blue ribbon like you would receive as a prize in a contest. On it was written in italics, "The Church's Finest Hour!" We are on the cusp of the greatest hour that that Church of Jesus Christ has ever known.
"Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee..." (Isaiah 60:1-4)
This is not just a nice passage of Scripture or some kind of metaphor to give us some kind of intellectual stimulation—this is a prophetically inspired writing of the Spirit, telling us of the greater glory that Jesus would come to give us so we can shine with His light.
There will be a greater level of darkness released in the earth, but this is only an indication that our light will shine even brighter. Things will get very "black and white." God will make a distinction for His people who walk in the light of His presence in obedience to Him. When we look at Isaiah 60 we see the words "Arise and Shine." In the original Hebrew, the word for "arise" is the same word that is used for "decree." The spirit of this verse means "to rise up and decree." It is the very same word used in Job 22:28 that says:
"Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways." (Photo via Unsplash)
The word for "shine" means to "be lit on fire" or to be "ignited." When we combine these two words together, they have a very potent meaning: "Rise up to decree the heart of God and be lit on fire!" I've taken liberty to create my own rendition from the Original Hebrew Dictionary of this verse below:
"Arise and decree the heart of God and be set on fire for your Illuminating Light has come and the "kabod" of the Eternal God's weighty glory is breaking out and shining forth beams of light upon you." (Isaiah 60:1 personal paraphrase)
This is the time for our illumination, the time for our rising and shining, for we are living in the greatest hour for the Church that has ever been. What may seem like a sleeping giant is about to awake and illuminate the earth with God's glory. The word for glory in this passage is "kabod," the weight-glory of God's presence.
Realize that the glory of His Spirit is tangible, experiential, weighty and very real for us to know on an intimate level.
III. Growing in His Presence
If God's people are not experiencing His glory there can be various reasons for this. But God wants to pop the cork for you to know His glory! In other words, He wants to remove the limitation and that which is clogging your heart from knowing the glory of His Spirit—even on the inside.
There can be compromise with the spirit of the world where your spiritual senses are dulled to the reality of His manifested presence. There can be worries and fear—so many things. Leaning on intellect instead of the Holy Spirit means we are not trusting in the Lord with our whole hearts, as the natural mind thinks totally opposite to the Spirit.
Carnality is basically when syncretistic, compromising mindsets are still prevalent as a person is trying to serve two masters. It is hanging on to the spirit of the world while trying to follow God. At one level it is simply spiritual immaturity and at another spiritual harlotry. At some point we are held accountable, for we should know better by now. You cannot stay an infant forever. From one angle this is what having a "religious spirit" can look like. It is like a person trying to love God while still loving the things of this world. Transformation of the soul has not taken hold. As we follow the Lord we are called to love Him with ALL of our hearts, souls, minds and strength.
"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:15-17) (Photo via Unsplash)
This brings us back to how people can be ignorant of the presence of God. If we truly hunger and thirst for righteousness we will be filled.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." (Matthew 5:6)
There is no question here on God's end. He is faithful and true. It is realizing where your treasure truly is because God cannot lie and keeps every promise.
If we ask for bread He will not give us a stone. God is true. He will do what He says. The issue is not with Him but on our end. In this passage, Jesus makes it clear that when you really want God you will get Him—even in the Person of the Holy Spirit.
"If a son ASKS for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he ASKS for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he ASKS for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:11-13 emphasis added)
IV. Higher Places & True Treasure
How can you learn to be on the receiving end of God's presence?
1. Be honest with yourself and with God.
2. Are there things you know you need to let go of?
3. Where is your treasure? Is it God or something else?
4. Do you spend time seeking Him?
5. Do you enjoy spending time in worship—vocalizing to the Lord?
It is all about what you really value, treasure and desire. You can figure this out by evaluating where you spend your time and affections. What is the first thing you run to? What do you like to listen to? If it is not God it is something else. If you feel you have misplaced desires, God can change that. If we hunger for God it is by His grace. If we seek God it is by His grace. If we know God it is by His grace. Everything that we do is by the grace of God. The bridge that has to be crossed in your heart is ASKING for His grace, asking for His help and the grace to receive His presence.
Remember, God says, "If you draw near to Me I will draw near to you." Commitment and responsibility are not popular words these days but you have to know that God very much uses the word "IF." It is our responsibility to draw near to God, make an effort and choose Him above all things—putting Him first. It is all too easy to have all the right words. Your actions far outweigh what you say.
There are such wonderful blessings that God wants to pour out on us but so many people think they can just do anything they want, THEN blame God when nothing good happens in their lives. Let's make it clear. A life of religiosity and compromise will KILL God's plan for your life. If you follow His truth and lean upon His Spirit—He is good to fulfill His PROMISES. This does not mean you have arrived but that you are "staying the course." His promises are true, enabling us to be partakers of His divine nature—even by HIS GRACE.
"Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us BY GLORY AND VIRTUE, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." (2 Peter 1:2-4)
That means we can walk as Jesus walked—by the grace of God. He was the perfect representation of the Father in His divine nature walking the earth. God has called us to glory—to arise and shine with the glory of His presence. All of us have been chosen to drink of the living waters, walking in the realization that we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places above all things.
Say yes to His blessing and the privilege of being seated with Jesus today as He has called you to higher places with Him—even to be used a vessel of outpouring in this hour.
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John and Brandi Belt
Belt Ministries
Email:Â hello@beltministries.com
Website:Â www.beltministries.com
John and Brandi Belt are the leaders of Belt Ministries. The heart of their message is that God's greatest desire is to indwell His people with His presence. They believe that man was created to be inhabited by God through His Spirit. With a sincere devotion to God through the Holy Spirit, people can live in a place of overflow in His presence. This overflow translates into touching the lives of others through living encounters with God. When John and Brandi minister, the intimate presence of God is manifest – being accompanied with demonstrations of God's power to heal, revive, and restore.
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Our friend, John Belt, is all about carrying and pouring out the presence of God. If you've been in his worship gatherings and meetings...you quickly find this out!
