“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. ”Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe… Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”(1Corinth.1:18-31)
The major point in victory for me personally is that Gift goes higher than the human flesh. Again we face the redemption issue here: when man fell, and the law of sin began acting inside man, it got rooted and made a dwelling place in man’s soul. As Paul writes in Romans 7, what I desire I can’t do, what I don’t desire I do. And all the effort of man can also go high and get refined, and the reason starts making itself high above faith, and eventually it reaches the levels where it denies the existence of God, because of so much learning.
I am not speaking against education. Education is different from education like Satan and God. There’s literally satanic education, but there’s divine one. Therefore, be careful when you choose teachers for yourselves, who will teach you and what.
So the reason goes high to the human flesh, but it is written that witchcraft is the works of the flesh. Witchcraft and magic are manipulation, and today many of the science areas are simply magic. You know that psychology in different manifestation, if it is not involved in the study of the human psyche, but it teaches how to manipulate man, in order to make him a part of the society, whereas he is untouchable, man is free. Does the society have a right for man?
And the Gift of God arises against human flesh – why? Because man is an enemy? – No, but because man is defiled. There’s both evil root and good root in him. You know how the evil root comes, Nietzsche’s philosophy of superman – this is all against God, and today there are whole branches that move on the basis of Nietzsche’s superman. And this is all considered science, people study this. Other people study how money moves, in order to intercept the current, sort of plugging in to an oil pipe. In reality this is a crime, same as if you plugged into someone’s energy and pump it, and get rich at its cost. On a big scale only a prophet is able to see it, when you see and understand, this is a wicked pipe.
Creative arts of man are also a manifestation of his higher spirit, when he is not alien to beauty. For instance, the etalon of beauty has always been human body. There’s nothing more beautiful in the world than the body of man, the face of man, his emotions expressed through the eyes, his hands, belly, hair, his voice…
And there’s pornography – this is abomination, this is disgusting. It takes the beautiful creation and casts it into where there’s a whole industry, films, feature films, scenario writers work on that, film directors, even gifted ones, and they call it art, simply put it 18+ or 21+. And there are many other streams and directions. You may ask, why should we know all this stuff? You don’t have to, there are others who do, but we can’t close our eyes at that carelessly. And this is done by certain forces that suppress creative potential in us.
So the church comes there, the church is manifestation of the Bride. And I see two sides – on the one God pours out His mercy on those weak, unwise, He pours His grace of the blood, Spirit, water, gives His washing of the Word. But this is a sad, non-victorious Bride is waiting on the Bridegroom to have pity on her. And He will have pity on her – I believe and hope and pray so. He will have pity on her, just because her love wasn’t enough, but His love is enough for both. I believe so, He will come for her. I used to preach against such bride. Now I pray and believe that if our love is not enough, His love will be enough for both.
But the other side – it is so wonderful when she is waiting for Him with all the awareness and is bringing herself in order, she is on watch, not to get herself loose either outwardly or inwardly, she keeps doing her best to match the wonderful King, the Bridegroom, Christ. This is a totally different thing. And you know what, guys, I tell you, you won’t do there without creative spirit. You won’t be able even to adorn yourself if you don’t have a sense of taste, a sense to be liked. These are very important things.
When there’s nothing except “Samson’s wheel”, then it is easy to hide behind this – you keep doing the same kind of church service, the same songs; and your personal life is most likely the same – if your church service is uninteresting, you life is 100% uninteresting too. Because if your life is “pushing the boundaries” one, you won’t stand it that your personal life is interesting, but in church it is not. Be this true, you are an apostate, you don’t love God’s house, you run to your own house, but the church is neglected. Do not ever neglect the church, you have no right for that, or what you do isn’t church.
“At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.” (Matt.11:25-26)
It is easier for me to work with the generation that is open, that with those who have been there for long, but aren’t willing to change – they are so difficult and stubborn, and even don’t realize that they oppose. An open ear is the first step into changing for perfection, to the high place, to the highest happiness – when you hear. But if your spirit stands firm in what it has or has earned then it is really difficult to open your ear and obey it.
You know, the next step is obeying, which is not pleasant. The rich young man – he made the first step, he heard: “sell your possessions, give it out to the poor and follow Me”. But he did not obey, he turned and walked away. You know what he probably thought? – “Jesus is not the one who I need. I’ll go and look for another church. I observe the commandments – this is where we agree. But to sell all that I have? How to serve in church then?” – Hold on, this was an individual prophecy to you, it was your destiny. Jesus love you, He could make you a prince of the spirit. You could’ve received a completely different life and become a beloved son of God through Jesus Christ. You could’ve become the best friend of Jesus and lean on His bosom together with John.
And the major thing here is that God is enough. I share my heart with you: when we began doing mission, started sending teams to other countries, it wasn’t about being cool and have churches there, but my major question was, whether I am able to do what is written in the Scripture? Does this Bible really work today? Is it alive for me? And I don’t have to speak Hebrew or Greek or Latin or English or Welsh! Right where I am now I can love God so much that I make Him desire to come to me and bless me, and dig out wonderful Siloam, the wonderful spring. This was crucial for me – that an ordinary city somewhere at the end of the world can be Apostolic. This was crucial for me to have God desire to bless me the way He blessed David, Isaiah, prophets and Apostles. This is true. Whether I made it or not – I don’t know, I am not the one to judge, but this was the major motivation for the victory; that the gift of God, which is higher than education or other efforts of human flesh – I refer the grey substance to the flesh also, if it is not enlightened by the truth and God’s Spirit.
Is the Gift of God able to do what all the professionals strive for, or magnates or scholars? Is he ready to stand up and fight? Not even fight, but rise above this?
I am speaking a very powerful word to you today. This is not a word, this is the way. So that you can lift up the gift of God and glorify God with the gift that is in you! Many of us got mixed, and your gift has become scarce, it has covered with mold, or even shell, or even armor-plating with locks. You have locked it into education or business or your routine of making a living and survive in this world, so you are not taking care of the gift, and it is sleeping. It is written that “the herds of the cattle are perplexed, because the grain is rotten under their clods” (Joel 1:17).
What is the gift in you? One, the very major?
When I believed, one thing I knew I could do – love God endlessly! I remember how would shout to Him like an insane, how much I loved Him, and the other part of me got scared, saying, “what’s wrong with you? What are you doing?” But I realized I could do it forever, and the Lord was with me rejoicing”.
And another thing I understand now is that He doesn’t kill human spirit, He sets him free. Today I am free more than I ever was. I don’t want to sin certain things, not because there’s a table of sins and things either match it or not; but because your consciousness becomes the law. When the law transits from the stones into the book, from the book it transits into the trees and rocks, and into you, and you feel God’s will, God’s law. And if you are immersed in love – this is where we all should aspire and immerse – then this is the highest level of safety.
I keep getting proofs that God’s gift is higher than anything. And God’s gift is God. And I am calling now, I am calling the new voice, the New Voice of wisdom, voice of beauty and gracefulness, the voice of power and strength, voice of perfection and elevation, of the highest, purest and most beautiful – the new voice in the gift that God gave to man.
It is better to have and not speak, than to speak and not have.
So today I am calling you out those who think themselves poor, feeble, unwise, not noble, not great, as I read. Look, God has chosen you, why? To make you great. I am calling you, so that you begin to seek and you find your main gift, and uncover, unseal it, release it, because many have mixed it with careers, jobs, families etc., and the gift is now under the heavy layers. How can you be happy? at the very depth of yourself you have this longing, because you are not fulfilling God’s will, what you were made for.
God has chosen you and set you and breathed the gift in you, so that you unfold this gift and glorify the Creator. But if you are not acting in this gift, the what is the highest purpose on earth?- It is lost. Understand this, if you understand what I am talking about.
Dear brothers and sisters, we do have hope in our hands, God has not closed the heavens yet. He has not taken the church yet, He has not taken the grace from the earth. It is here in our midst, it hasn’t gotten less. The conditions have changed, they have become more difficult; the kaleidoscope of the darkness web has become more refined. But God always wins. The Horseman covered with blood, looks into your heart with His red shining eyes. He who has ear to hear let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.