Successful Healing Evangelist Falls

There is a well-known healing evangelist who after becoming as successful as any of his contemporaries, was found to be flawed to an extent that it ended his ministry. You might have read about him. Unfortunately, despite all of the success he achieved praying for those sick of all kinds of maladies, he will none-the-less be remembered, not for those things, but for falling from his high position. What do we conclude about such a person? Were all those healings just false signs, and does his fall make this person a false teacher? Can anything they ministered be trusted and accepted? Doesn't this type of situation confirm our skepticism concerning  the ministry of signs and wonders?

Keep in mind that when Jesus sent out his twelve disciples to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demonic influences, he knew that these men were imperfect, yet he sent them out anyway. And, all twelve returned with glowing reports of what they had accomplished (Mk 6:13, 30)—all twelve including a man named Judas Iscariot. Yes! This is the successful healing evangelist who fell. I'm reporting the news a little late (by 2,000 years) so that I might make a point. When the disciples returned to Jesus, there is no indication that anyone of them fell short of Jesus' expectations. They were all successful healing evangelists, including Judas. 

Furthermore, after his resurrection, Jesus gave us what we refer to as the Great Commission. He did not feel the need to take into account Judas' actions and downgrade or eliminate the supernatural aspect of the commission, simply because Judas failed to live up to his potential. Instead, he announced that certain signs would follow those who believe. And after Pentecost, Peter and John did not decline to pray for the lame man at the temple, reasoning that by his actions, Judas disqualified supernatural ministry. They not only successfully prayed for this man's healing, after being reprimanded for doing so, the apostles cried out to God for even more powerful signs and God obliged them (Acts 4:30-33).

So let's not let a good reason, the failings of others, become a bad excuse for not adopting what Paul calls the proclamation of the full Gospel with the power of signs and wonders (Ro 15:18-19). 

God’s Magnetic Power of Healing

“I tried prayer for healing a couple of times, but it didn’t work”

It’s easy for us to become discouraged, disenchanted, and even dismayed with supernatural healing. Some have tried it and it just didn’t take. Others may have even seen positive results, but had the malady later return. And, while others continue to experience success from prayer for healing, these reports often discourage those who seemed to have experienced defeat, rather than being encouraged by them. It makes healing seem more like magic which works, presumably for some, but not for others. While I can’t address every concern about healing, I hope that the following sheds some light on the subject.

Perception is Everything

The more we become familiar with God and his ways, especially when it comes to healing, the more we will become aware of the nature of both. God and the power he uses to affect his creation are invisible, not unlike the power of magnetism. While this comparison is somewhat imperfect, it is a good place to begin in understanding how God works.

Magnetism

Magnets, as we know, attract metals. If we place a piece of metal in direct proximity of a magnetic force, there will be an attraction, right? If there isn’t an attraction, we might assume that what we believed to be a magnet wasn’t really a magnet after all and so, we disregard it altogether. The fact is, however, that magnets only attract certain types of metals. In addition, there are more than just one type of magnet. In other words, we need to look beyond the surface of things, especially when making a comparison between a natural force and God’s supernatural ways.

Electromagnetism

While magnets occur in nature, there are other kinds of magnets, ones which rely on the power of electricity. If one coils a conductive wire around a metal rod and attaches the ends of the wire to the positive and negative posts of a battery, those efforts will produce an electromagnet where before, no magnet existed at all. The magnetic field it produces is dependent upon the energy flowing through the wire. For this reason, an electromagnet is a much better model for understanding healing.

Discovering Our Metal

Not every metal is affected by magnetic attraction. While iron, nickel, and cobalt are susceptible to a magnetic field, metals like brass, aluminum, and copper are not. And so, an object containing an amalgam of metals might be only mildly attracted to a magnetic force, simply because it does not contain enough iron or other attractive metals. Distance is also a factor for the further away the metal is to the magnetic field, the weaker the attraction will be.

When Healing Doesn’t Come 

As you can see, there are a number of factors which might prevent an attraction between an electromagnet and a metallic object—some which can be easily observed or reasoned, and some which cannot. In our search for answers, we’re not attempting to find a place of blame, but to prove the spiritual law that God heals and that he can heal us. As I said, magnetism and even science, makes for an imperfect comparison to the power of God to heal. But, like science, the nature of God is discoverable. He hides things not from us, but for us that we would seek to know and therefore, find.

The Tenacity of Edison

Thomas Edison is famously quoted for saying that he didn’t fail when searching for the best filament to use in the electric lightbulb, he just found 10,000 ways that wouldn’t work. Eventually, he did find the right filament and you’re likely benefiting from his tenacity right now. Jesus also praised the value of tenacity when he told a parable, just to underscore the idea that we should, “…always pray, and not give up” (Luke 18:1 NHB). Not giving up doesn’t necessarily mean that we try the same thing over and over, although it may. Consider the workings of an electromagnetic experiment. For everything to work properly, one would have to assure that the power source were in order and that the wires were attached properly to the terminals. The wire must also be tightly wound around the metal rod with no overlap. Then there’s the nature and the proximity of the metal to consider. We can’t give up, especially because healing is part of the atonement that Jesus paid for.

From Magnets to Medicines

Have you ever had a headache that just wouldn’t go away? You took all sorts of pain relievers, but they just didn’t make a dent in your headache. Or have you been to a doctor for some sort of fantom pain or lack of motion and they told you that they could find no cause? And yet, I bet you’ve taken pain relievers since those times of failure and have visited a physician again, despite the lack of success previously experienced. With this track record, how is it that we can so easily give up on God saying, “I tried it once, but it didn’t work,” or “My knee felt better instantly and for a couple of weeks, but then the pain came back?” God doesn’t mind if you come back and ask again, just like he doesn’t mind if you have to take another does of acetaminophen.

You Are the Magnet, and I Am the Steel

Perhaps we return to medicine so readily, despite its imperfections, simply because we have become familiar with dealing with its imperfections. And while we understand that God is perfect, we are apprehensive in dealing with the fact that we are not. We don’t always know how to become a piece of metal that is in position to be attracted to God’s healing power and because of our ignorance, we actually repel his power by relying on the power of our own reasoning. While we might believe that our power to repel God’s attraction pales in comparison, in a fallen world, the opposition can be enough to counteract attraction. 

A Positive Force

Electromagnetism makes for an adequate model for divine healing at least in the respect that it shows God’s willingness to attract us. But, we must pursue that attraction and not give up. We must seek to find, knock for doors to open, hunger and thirst that we might be filled, and eagerly desire and pursue what the Gospel freely provides. It is not enough to know that God’s power is available and inexhaustible, we must realize our responsibility to make sure his power is connected to the means by which we’re seeking to be drawn towards the healing he provides. Seek and discover the connections needed. Don’t give up on the attraction. Be the steel that allows Him to pull you and your circumstances towards his ability to affect them and bring healing.

I Smell Fire

I've just finished listing to, and have been greatly impacted by the audiobook, Supernatural: The life of William Branham. The vibe I picked up from this highly-detailed biography of one of the Churches' healing pioneers, contains a similar and familiar scent, reminding me of what I've read concerning other revivals of the past. And while I've heard a number of voices saying that what God is doing now and is about to do will be a "new thing," it is being birthed by the same fire which ignited Pentecost as well as the subsequent seasons of revival which followed behind it. 

It is said that those who do not study and learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I would add that those who fail to study the past will be less able to comprehend what is possible for us today and in the future. God wants to show and do more among us than we can ask or imagine, but we must at least maintain a healthy and growing baseline so that we can expect the greatest level of the "More" that he would like to show and do.

I don't believe that anyone could accuse me of operating in a gift of intercession. I have always seemed to struggle through to try to generate a disciplined prayer life. However, sometimes praying for God to move among us can be as simple as coming into agreement with what he has put in front of us and made plain concerning his intentions. I believe that he has released and sparked something that should not be too hard for us to detect, and with which we can resonate. They say that animals can readily smell and detect a coming forest fire and act accordingly, even when the fire is small and undetectable by humans. Can you catch the scent of something beginning to burn? If so, follow that scent!

What God needs is for us to be ready and equipped for a full-fledged fire, not so that we can extinguish it but so that it might consume us up. Some of us have fears and insecurities, which on a personal level, have held us back. And while the fire comes to test us (something which might initially generate some fear and apprehension), it comes primarily to burn away those things which have hindered us. Unlike its natural counterpart, supernatural fire creates more opportunities than what it consumes.

So against nature, we must turn towards the coming fire so that we can be part of it. This is how all revivals of the past were encouraged and maintained. We cannot let this one fail to burn because we're sitting amidst damp wood, or have surrounded ourselves with a moat of stagnant water so as to bar the flames from coming. We must welcome them. It seems counter-intuitive but these flames bring life, not damage. Remember how the flames of fire rested on the disciples' heads at Pentecost? The fire did not come to destroy but to do its work in them, eventually spreading outwards to those around them. Let's let it do that same work in each of us.

SAME FAITH

Is there a different faith required for those believing for relief from great financial need than those who are believing for a family member to be freed from substance abuse? Is there a difference between the nature of faith it takes to pray for others to be healed and the nature of faith it takes to receive healing for ourselves? I contend that the faith is the same, but that its application and the roadblocks to apprehending that faith may differ depending upon the situation. Paul says that there is one faith (Eph 4:5), and that the same faith that saves the Jews, saves the Gentiles as well (Ro 3:30). It is that, “Same Faith” which I want to talk about.

Faith is not something we produce out of our will. While faith can be stirred up and encouraged—something we should spend more time thinking about—we have absolutely no power in ourselves to create faith so that God will answer our prayers. Zilch! There is truth in the idea of believing “more,” but not in the context that we can believe “harder.” Think back to when we first met the Lord. Somehow, we heard the Word of the Gospel and were able to believe it. And this, the greatest miracle of all, did not come because we had all the answers.

We heard the Word and were empowered to believe in Jesus Christ as the only mediator between God and man. We believed that he was just who he said that he was and somehow, we believed that he would adopt us into his Kingdom. How could we believe all that through what little had been presented to most of us? I contend that in that moment, it was the power of that faith, a faith which could be argued as being “little faith,” which translated us from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of his dear Son! And, it was also “little faith,” perhaps as small as a mustard seed which empowered Peter to walk on the surface of Lake Galilee. Because of who Jesus is, anything is possible for those who believe, that is, those who apply their faith in Jesus (Mark 9:23). And that’s where the difference lies.

We apprehend our faith in Jesus based upon the task or need before us, but our focus must be upon Jesus—who he is, what he’s done, and how he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews calls faith, the, “…Confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb 11:1 NIV). We have confidence in what we hope for, and are assured about what we do not yet see before us only because of Jesus. This is not a different faith from that which saved us, it is merely an extension of that same faith.

I love the HELPS Word Study available on biblehub.com as they do such a good job of illuminating the original text. Here’s what they say about the word translated as “little faith.” They note that “little faith,” (oligópistos), is a compound word meaning “little in number”…”faith.” In context of its five appearances in the New Testament, it is used as a rebuke each time the disciples failed to hear what Jesus was saying and failure to put their faith into practice, that they had little or few occurrences or few applications of their faith.

So Jesus was not chiding them for not ramping up enough faith, or trying to push the right “faith buttons,” but was admonishing them for not putting their faith into practice by acting upon what he had said. While we can’t produce faith out of thin air, something we sometimes try to do, we can exercise, practice, and expand upon the faith we’ve been given. The more we do, we’ll move from being those who have little faith, to those who walk in faith…and isn’t that the goal? If that little bit of faith was enough to get us saved when we were still yet sinners and his enemies, how much more is available to us now through that very same faith, now that we have been reconciled to him? (Ro 5:8-11) So let’s drop all pretense and simply say, “Jesus, I believe you. Show me how to practice my belief in you because I am in need.” Remember, a bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out (Mat 12:20). Draw close to him, using the same faith that brought you in, and he will draw near to you. That’s how Paul could say…

“…I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me…Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?…He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit” (Galatians 2:20, 3:3-5, 14).

There’s a lot of faith found in those passages. Believing what we hear from God is Paul’s prescription for the Galatians and for us, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit in our lives…the same Spirit that Jesus said would be with us and alongside of us, so that he could remind us of what Jesus is saying, that is, what we have heard (Jo 16:13-15). That’s what Jesus rebuked his disciples for, they were not listening to and heeding what he said by putting their faith into practice. And where do we get that kind of faith? As believers, we all have that kind of faith already, but we must cultivate it. It is not a different faith for those other, more faith-like Christians, it is the measure of faith given to each of us as a deposit that we might expand upon it in our lives and affect those around us. That’s who we are and we can always start right where we’re at, especially if we feel faithless and full of failure. That might actually be the very best place to begin, understanding that it even those with faith as small as a mustard seed can uproot a tree planted in the earth, and replant it in the sea (Luke 17:6). So, start by taking what Jesus has said and begin by putting him front and center, relying upon his faithfulness. Start digging up that, “Same Faith” today!

Is It Today Yet?

I was recently in a conversation where the idea that God still speaks today was in question. The person making the point believed that God only speaks today through his written word. That logic, however, creates quite a conundrum because the Bible, gives no indication that God would or has ever stopped speaking. Jesus Christ is, after all, the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). After his resurrection and ascension, he, along with his Father and the Spirit, are found speaking to believers in various ways up until the final pages of the New Testament.

It is today with which we should be most concerned, but before we go there, let’s first dismiss the idea that God could lose the will or the ability to speak, that he has had his larynx legally tied in a knot, or that he has taken a vow of silence seeing that everything that he had wanted to say had finally been written down. I’m finding that reasoning very difficult to support, especially since God also indicates in his written word that even inanimate objects like rocks could cry out if necessary (Luke 19:40). In addition, we're told that the blood of Abel, though dead, is still able to speak (Hebrews 11:4). And if God does not speak today, how were any of us enabled to answer his call?

As I read them, the Scriptures indicate that God is a God of and for all seasons and dispensations, not a God of the past only. Furthermore, the written word, which I am told is the only means by which God speaks today, promises us that in these last days, Jesus is indeed speaking (Hebrews 1:1-2). Since the time that this passage was written, the only thing which has changed in the new, everlasting, and final covenant is that there have been more last days added to the tally. As long as we are his sheep, we should be hearing his voice (John 10:27). While yesterday is gone, eternity starts fresh each morning, becoming a day which the Holy Spirit calls, “Today.” And according to the author of Hebrews, as long as it is called, “Today,” we are called to encourage one another, keep our hearts soft and on target, and of course, hear God’s voice (Hebrews 3:7-15 NIV). Everyday is “Today,” yet, we’ve not yet excelled in keeping our hearts from getting hard and have a long way to go to perfect the art of encouragement. Is that merely because we’ve not responded well to his voice, or is it because we have come to deny that he is even speaking?

So while it is one thing to acknowledge that the Bible contains the very thoughts and expressions of God, we must not fall prey to the notion that God no longer speaks today. He has not imposed a gag order on himself, freezing himself in time while posting his instructions for life on the outside of the fridge. For all intents and purposes, many have put God in just such a box, unintentionally rendering his voice as the dead author of a living autobiography, instead of a very present voice which makes his word alive in us. God did not speak from the beginning of creation so that we might one day receive his thoughts in written form alone. Instead, he recorded all those things so that we might seek out and listen to his voice. Today, if you hear his voice, don’t let your hearts become hardened for as long as it is called, “Today,” his living voice still speaks…at least that’s what the Holy Spirit says. 

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts" (Hebrews 3:7 NIV).

This Is That!

While we might desire to easily understand the workings of the Holy Spirit, God makes that very difficult. We desire straight-edged explanations as well as the means by which we can measure what God has done and is doing. Yet, even a Spirit-inspired explanation by an eye-witness participant on the Day of Pentecost appears to generate more questions than answers. While that day obviously impacted the crowds, Luke’s account of Peter’s sermon continues to make many of us scratch our heads. 

Let Me Explain

It seems, at first glance anyway, that Peter did a lousy job of explaining the events of Pentecost—at least by quoting Joel. On the morning when 120 spoke in languages they themselves didn't know, but that their hearers could understand, he had this to say in explanation:

“…This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Acts 2:17-21 NIV).

This seems more mystery than explanation. What was Peter doing?

This is That

This passage never mentions the phenomenon of speaking in different languages nor does Luke care to give commentary on the day’s events. Watchman Nee, however, adds an interesting perspective to Peter’s reference to Joel’s prophecy:

“What did Peter mean? Imagine him quoting God's Word to show that the experience of Pentecost was the outpouring of the Spirit spoken of by Joel, without a single one of the evidences mentioned by Joel being found at Pentecost. What the Book mentioned the disciples lacked, and what the disciples had the Book did not mention!…Note carefully that Peter did not say: `What you see and hear fulfills what was spoken by the prophet Joel'. What he said was: ‘This is that which hath been spoken by the prophet Joel’ (Acts 2:16). It was not a case of fulfillment, but of an experience of the same order. ‘This is that’ means that `this which you see and hear is of the same order as that which is foretold'…The outward evidences may be many and varied, and we have to admit that occasionally they are strange; but the Spirit is one, and He is Lord.” 
(Watchman Nee, The Normal Christian Life)

Nee does a good job of putting Peter’s explanation into perspective. Gifts of other languages, the ability to operate in inspired knowledge and speech, receiving inspired dreams, and other such manifestations of the Spirit, were of the same source. They were all those things Jesus said believers would operate in (Mark 16:17-18) and they all come from the same Spirit.

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work” (1 Corinthians 12:4-6 NIV)

In addition to this message of oneness concerning the expression of God’s power, there is a familiarity about Peter’s lack of specificity which he must have learned from Jesus during the three years prior to this day of the outpouring of the Spirit.

Seekers

Jesus always spoke to the people in parables, saying, “This is what the Kingdom of God is like,” never saying, “This is what the Kingdom of God is.” It’s not that Jesus and Peter did not give details, nor did they neglect referencing relevant Scripture passages, but they proclaimed the Gospel in a way which made people seek after it if they wanted to enter in.

“…Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33 NIV).
(Mt 5:6, Acts 15:16-17, 17:26-27, Ro 8:5, 1 Co 12:31, 14:1, etc.).

The reason many don’t pursue the gifts of the Spirit initially poured out on the Church at Pentecost, seems to stem from ignorance of them. To be sure, the gifts of the Spirit are not easily understood. Paul’s treatise on the subject in Chapters 12-14 of 1 Corinthians, intended to put the operation of the gifts in their proper perspective, these are the same passages many rest upon to dispute their operation today. We tend towards clear and exact definitions, that which we can grasp and understand. That’s how we like our theology and the power of God isn’t so easily codified. However logic seems to become less important to us in the realm of relationships and perhaps we should consider God’s power from that perspective.

The Mystery of His Power

While building a meaningful relationship, especially a romantic one, we are often less concerned with collecting facts as we are experiencing the presence of, and building a rapport with the other person. In other words, we enjoy experiencing the mystery of the relationship.  We must take the same approach as we seek to understand how and why God releases his power and why he has designated the Church to be the expression of that power.

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the…incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead… And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way” (Ephesians 1:17,19-20,22 NIV).

His power remains a mystery only to those who approach it through wisdom and reasoning alone, or who choose not to approach it at all. That is not to say that God is not interested in reason, but simply that his reason surpasses our finite understanding. This knowledge can only come by faith and experience. And so, we can’t measure God’s power. But, we can at least measure the effectiveness and witness of his power through us.

Spiritual Impact

Remember that the Day of Pentecost began with an outpouring of the Spirit and concluded with the influx of 3,000 believers into the Church—some of whom had been cheering on the death of Jesus just weeks before. How did this happen?

While even sincere believers can shy away from, and even become ashamed of how God expresses himself in power as on the Day of Pentecost, we cannot escape the fact that such expressions can be extremely effective in confirming the Gospel. We must, then, weigh our comfort level against what God might do if we were to participate in those things which are “like” those described by Joel. Pentecost was not an isolated incident nor a singular display of God’s power, nor was it intended to be.

The Power of Power

Prophecy is one of gift of the Spirit which holds great power. Through Joel, God promised that all “…sons and daughters will prophesy” (Acts 2:17), in the same way that Jesus told us of the supernatural signs that would follow those who believe (Mark 16:17-18). In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul reveals that prophecy is the gift which we should most eagerly desire so that the Church might be built up (1 Co 14:1). But this gift also holds great power for the Church in reaching unbelievers.

“But if an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’” (1 Corinthians 14:24-25 NIV).

So while it is true that Paul reasoned with the Jews and Greeks alike on a regular basis, there is little mention of any great effectiveness in employing that practice; and we owe it to Paul himself to explain why that might be. He understood that reason and understanding have their place but are limited by the nature of human wisdom. Instead, he relied upon the power of God.

“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5 NIV).
“I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done—by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God” (Romans 15:18-19 NIV).

Despite the fact that it doesn’t seem to make sense, we must accept Paul’s testimony that the presentation of God’s power is the firmest foundation for faith to rest. That’s what happened on the Day of Pentecost. It was strange, it was off-putting to some, and yet that’s what drew in 3,000 believers. This is what Joel prophesied and what manifest on that day—it was a sign on the earth below.

Measuring Up

While we can’t quantify or measure the power of Pentecost, we can begin to measure our own effectiveness. If our efforts are not making people fall down and exclaim that God is really among us, to what extent is God really among us? I suggest that as the Church, we have room to grow into the full stature of Christ so that we might begin to look and act more like Jesus (Eph 4:13), and the early Church. What are we afraid of?

While the first stage of wisdom is indeed reverential fear, our wisdom must mature beyond fear. After escaping Egypt, the Israelites were given the Gospel, but their fear of the presence and power of God kept them from acting in faith (Ex 20:18-19, Heb 4:2, 12:18-21). But, we are better equipped to move beyond our fears. Consider that while we respect the awesome power of electricity, we don’t shut it off in fear of what it might do to us. We understand what it can do for us and so, move beyond our fear. We must do the same with the power of the resurrection as displayed on the Day of Pentecost and throughout the Book of Acts.

Pentecost

Jesus called the outpouring of the Spirit, the promise of the Father. While he personally told the disciples to wait until they received the Spirit, the promise is for all believers. It was granted for all alive in the last days, and is a direct result of Jesus’ resurrection:

“In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams” (Acts 2:17 NIV).
“God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear” (Acts 2:32-33 NIV).

According to Peter, it is Jesus himself who has poured out the Spirit. The crowds both saw and heard the power of God in action, and they came to believe. It’s not easily understood, but can be easily received. Peter was just a fisherman, and until he received the promise of the Father.

“…Wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:4,8 NIV).

We are able to receive the same promise of the Father that Peter and 120 received in the upper room on the Day of Pentecost for as Peter said:

“…You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” (Acts 2:38-39).

It is not easily understood, yet worthy of our pursuit (1 Co 14:1). 

...As the Waters Cover the Sea

The Knowledge of the Glory of the Lord

“…the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14 NIV). 

Have you ever stopped to think about how it is that the waters cover the sea? The simple answer to this question is that they cover the sea completely—from the surface all the way to the ocean floor. And so, in like manner, we look forward to the knowledge of the glory of the Lord covering the earth fully and completely. This sentiment is echoed throughout Scripture -  

“May the whole earth be filled with his glory” (Psalm 72:19 NIV). 

“... as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth” (Numbers 14:92 NIV). 

“The whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:2 NIV).

What is the Glory of God?

God's glory has to do with his power, and his renown, but it is also directly related to his nature. When Moses asked to see God's glory, Scripture tells us that God acted by showing Moses the one thing the world needs the most...his goodness.

"Then Moses said, ‘Now show me your glory.’ And the Lord said, ‘I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence’” (Exodus 33:18-19 NIV).

The glory of the Lord is awesome in its splendor like a vast, deep ocean which covers everything beneath it. Yet, beyond its depth and its fullness, the ocean exhibits other qualities and attributes which address the implications of the manifestation of his glory. These four states of oceanic glory help describe the magnitude of the majesty and glory of God. 

Still Waters

At times, waters are placid, peaceful and still. This glory emotes safety, serenity, and rest. Not only is it peaceful, it is a state that reflects on earth, the glory of heaven above. In this state, we might be tempted to sit and be stagnant in the status quo of the moment, forgetting the deepness beneath. 

Wind and the Water

Gentle motion, navigable sea lanes, and the ebb and flow of normal life are accomplished in the midst of fair weather. Wind that fills the sails and ruffles the surface of the waters makes for easy travel. The glory of this state is that learned skills can be applied in conjunction with the rhythm and flow of nature to produce forward motion and momentum. 

Stormy Weather

Heavy storms can unsettle the sea, bringing challenge and risk, making travel dependent upon the mercy of the waves. The vast majority try to avoid its unavoidable glory and run from its transformative power. But the fact that at least two miracles recorded in the Gospels took place amidst stormy weather, should encourage us to trust and leave fear behind.

Volatile Conditions

Harsh atmospheric and geological events can turn the sea into a force to be reckoned with. An earthquake, for example, can set water in motion, building wave upon wave until it reaches critical mass, not unlike the waves of revival. Often resisted, this force of glory is actually the remedy for those who possess an unquenchable thirst. Here, there is no more argument as to the majesty of His power.

Navigating the Glories

If we pray for the knowledge of the glory of the Lord to cover the earth as the waters cover the sea, then we must respect every aspect of how his glory manifests and the manner in which it covers creation.