Luke 5:17 And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.
I have something burning in my spirit for us today. This message today is part 3 of our series on cultivating a culture and an atmosphere for the miraculous.
I can't speak for you, but I can tell you for myself, this word is really moving in my spirit. It is waking a great hunger and desire for the presence of God. I can't wait to get to church before I get in his presence.
Today we are going to talk about the presence of God.
We are in the process of creating a culture for the miraculous. This is so critical because there won't be any kind of miraculous, or supernatural manifestations, without an atmosphere where the presence of God's Holy Spirit is welcome.
The first thing you should understand is, the wonderful presence of God that we experience in our lives is brought to us by the Holy Spirit.
The first time the word presence is mentioned in the Bible is in the book of Genesis 3:8 and they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.
Then we find God telling Moses that his presence would go with him...
Exodus 33:14 and he said, my presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
Then David speaks of the presence of God in Psalm 16:11, He says... Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for ever more.
Then two more places I want us to look at...
*Psalm 68:8 the earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
*Nahum 1:5 the mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.
I focused on these scriptures to establish in our minds, what the presence of God produces.
Too often we think of the presence of God, as only a sense of love, and peace, and acceptance. That is only one facet of the presence of God.
In reality it is the presence of God that destroys the power of hell. Without the presence of God, there is no power of God.
But on the other hand, wherever the Lord is present, his power is available.
? It's very sad that we have such a great disconnect between the presence and the power of God.
? I believe that one of the most important things that God is doing in these last days is reconnecting his presence with his power.
Now when I say that, I'm not saying that there was ever a disconnection from Gods side, but on our side, there has been that disconnect, and it has separated the presence of God from the power of God. You see it doesn't matter what the truth is, you will live by your perceptions. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."
Every one of us live by our perceptions. That's why it is so important who you listen to. Whose voice do you allow to shape your thoughts, and your beliefs?
? The voice you listen to is going to affect what you believe, and what you believe is going to determine what you have in life.
I'm going to say something and I want you to listen very closely. The devil doesn't care how much of the presence of God you experience, as long as there is a mental and emotional, and spiritual disconnect between the presence of God, and the power of God.
? Why? Because the devil knows that it is the power of God that heals, that delivers, and that produces miracles. And the devil also knows that anywhere this presence of the Lord is, the power of the Lord is accessible.
In other words, the power is in the presence.
Let me say it this way... his presence is the doorway to his power.
? But because of our disconnect of his presence from his power, we often stand in the doorway to his power, and never go in, and never access or experience his power, because for some reason, we are expecting something different than his presence.
Let me say it like this... The power of God is the presence of God focused.
To be touched by the power, is to have the presence of God focused like a laser beam on you.
? The power is the presence of God magnified and focused on you, to heal you, or deliver you, or destroy some demonic stronghold from your life.
Many people have felt the power of God, but because it felt just like his presence, they dismissed it as just the sweetness of his presence, and they missed what God was trying to do in them.
It's like when I was a kid; I used to light things with a magnifying glass, when I say light I mean set on fire. That magnifying glass wasn't the light or the power, but it focused the light into one place, and then that focused light, could burn things up.
? The presence of God comes through worship, and is magnified through worship. Then the power of God must be accessed through faith.
It doesn't take any faith to feel the presence of God. Even sinners can feel his presence; it only requires that somebody worships God. But to experience his power, faith must open the door. As I said, his presence is the door into his power.
Sadly, we can stand in the doorway of his presence, and never access his power, because faith must be exercised for his power to be manifested.
Now we want to recognize the different ways his presence can touch us.
? First of all there is his ambient presence, or his atmospheric presence. This is what we usually experience during our corporate worship... We sense his presence in the atmosphere.
If you will reach out by faith, you can receive his power right then, and receive your miracle or your healing, or your break through right then.
? Secondly is when an anointed vessel who carries the presence and the power of God, comes near you.
This can happen at any time, and anywhere. As you reach out in faith, Gods presence becomes magnified and focused on you, and through their touch or a look, or a spoken word, or a breath, the power of God can flow through them to you.
This is what happened when Peter got close to the sick and diseased, and demon possessed. When his shadow fell over them, they were healed.
? It wasn't his shadow that healed them; it was the presence of God that he carried, which emanated from his body.
That's why any time you have an anointed vessel pray for you... you should expect a release of Gods power to meet the need, whatever the need is.
? In our text, Jesus was present in a place, and because he was present, power was also available to heal.
But there is no mention that anyone was healed. Why not? The answer is, because no one exercised any faith to receive.
I believe that we have left many services where the power of the Lord was present in his presence, but we left without receiving from God, because we did not access his power.
On the other side of the spectrum, there was a woman with an issue of blood who came to where Jesus presence was, but she was not satisfied just to be in his presence.
? She was determined to access his power. So she pressed through the crowd. We could say... she pressed through the crowd that was satisfied with his presence alone.
But she needed his power. So she pushed her way through the crowd, and touched the hem of his garment, by faith, and when she did virtue, meaning the power of God, flowed into her body and healed her completely.
? Jesus knew that he carried in his body the power of God to heal. So wherever he was present, the power to heal was also present.
This woman put a demand on the anointing that was upon Jesus. Her faith drew the anointing out of Jesus, and she was healed.
? When you come into the presence of an anointed man or woman of God, you should not be satisfied with a simple touch of the presence of God. You should put a faith demand on the anointing so that power can flow into you.
I believe that every minute that I am in the presence of God, I am being microwaved with Holy Ghost nuclear power, so that when faith places a demand on the anointing that is on me, those nuclear microwaves of power can flow out through me, just like they flowed through Jesus.
Here is the reason I believe that.
? We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power, may be of God, and not of us. 2 Co 4:7
? Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. 1 Jn 4:4
? Behold I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Lu 10:19
Mk 16:17-18... These signs shall follow them that believe. In my name shall they cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents; if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them. They shall lay their hands upon the sick, and they shall recover.
? Out of your bellies shall flow rivers of living waters, thus spake he of the Holy Ghost.
You know that I believe in the importance of preaching and teaching the Word of God, but I will say to you without any fear of contradiction... the greatest need that we have corporately and personally as well, is the manifest presence of God.
There are some who think they are speaking from spiritual maturity when they say... you are really making this presence thing a big deal, then they will say... when you are spiritually mature you understand that we don't live by our feelings and our emotions, we walk by faith.
To that I say, I understand what you mean, but you are missing what we're talking about when we speak about the presence of God. Yes the presence of God can and most likely will affect us emotionally. In fact the Bible says, the joy of the Lord is my strength.
The Bible also says that one of the specific elements and fruit of the kingdom of God in our lives is Joy. For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
But the fact is, the presence of God is much deeper than that.The presence of God is God himself, through the Holy Spirit, making himself known to you through a tangible manifestation that actually permeates your being.
We sometimes call this the anointing, the anointing of his presence.
While we certainly don't encourage everyone to live by their feelings or their emotions, we do encourage, and scripture also encourages us to abide in the presence of God continually.
In fact that is what David was speaking about when he said... He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most high, shall abide under the shadow of the almighty.
So the dwelling is an intentional desire and action on our part, to live in the presence of God. Then we will continually be under the shadow of the almighty.
It should be the hearts desire of every child of God, to dwell in the secret place of the most high, and live under the shadow of the almighty.
The secret place speaks of Jesus himself, we dwell in him, as we live the abiding life. Then the fruit of that abiding life is, we live under the shadow of the almighty, which is speaking of his presence.
When people were healed as Peter's shadow passed over them, it wasn't Peter's shadow that healed them, it was the abiding presence of the Holy Ghost that overshadowed Peter.
God wants that kind of glory and power to flow throw everyone of us.
And it can and it will, as we learn how to dwell in the secret place, and cultivate the atmosphere for his presence every day.
? When is the last time you really not just felt, but actually spent time in the tangible, manifest presence of God?
Last Sunday? Oh no, that's too long. Two days ago, oh no that's too long.
? Pastor, it's almost like you're insinuating that we can have the presence of God all the time!
Oh no, I'm not insinuating nothing, I am telling you straight up... you can, if you want to, and if you're hungry enough, and if your willing to cultivate that relationship.
The Lord says to everyone of us... Draw nigh to me, and I will draw nigh to you.
What is the secret to the power of God? That's a good question, the answer is...
His power is hidden in his presence.
He only shares his power with those that love his presence.
