It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (John 6:63).
Someone can have a word of prophecy, and then go ahead to give it, but the words spoken come out empty, inoperative, and ineffective, even though the prophetic message is true. The reason is that the words spoken are devoid of the power of the Spirit.
This is one of the reasons we’re required to spend quality time praying in the Spirit, to be filled with the Spirit. Ephesians 5:18 says, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be (being) filled with the Spirit.”
Those words were originally written to the Christians in Ephesus, people who were already filled with the Spirit. So, it’s obvious that the Spirit of God, through the Apostle Paul, is referring to us being constantly under the influence, control, or sway of the Spirit. That way, your message and your preaching wouldn’t be with enticing or persuasive words of man’s wisdom, or clever rhetoric, but in the demonstration of the Spirit and of power.
When you’re filled with the Spirit, you minister the Spirit; your words are impregnated with divine energy. Your communication is such that people are never able to forget or get over their encounter with you; they’re impacted greatly by the love and person of Jesus; His wisdom, power, and righteousness that effuse and exude from your words.
2 Corinthians 4:5 says, “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord…”; meaning that no matter what you prophesy, preach or teach, it must be Christ Jesus, and you can’t preach or minister Christ without the power of the Spirit. It’s the reason sometimes you should pray and fast, soaking your spirit more into the Holy Spirit, so you can speak as the oracle of God.
We’re required to always walk in oneness and in sync with the Spirit, with His glory and power revealed in and through us. But that won’t be your experience until, and unless, you’re given to intense study of, and meditation on, the Word, and deep fellowship with the Spirit.
Be filled with the Spirit, again and again! Encourage the ministry of the Spirit in your personal life, and your words will be operative, effective, laden with divine power to alter situations and transform destinies.
For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also (1 Corinthians 14:14-15).
No matter how many earthly languages exist, there are not enough words in the human vocabulary with which to adequately and accurately express yourself to God. Our human earthly vocabulary isn’t pure enough to commune with the holy God that our heavenly Father is. That’s the reason the Holy Spirit gave us a language, pure and holy, with which to communicate in a way that’s acceptable to God: praying in other tongues.
Many only know how to pray in their understanding; that is, in their native language, but that won’t take you far enough. No matter how beautiful your words are in any earthly language, and how loaded with revelation they are, they’re no match for the pure language of the Spirit.
It’s for this reason that Paul, by the Spirit, penned the words we read in the latter part of our opening verse. Notice that praying with the spirit comes before praying with the understanding. Sadly, some Christians would rather pray with their understanding first, and then pray with the spirit, if they do pray in the spirit at all. They’ve made praying with the spirit the “also,” and that’s the wrong order.
Before you pray with your understanding, pray intensely and profusely first with the spirit. In fact, your praying in the understanding would be more effectual if you’d pray first with the spirit. And praying with the spirit doesn’t mean shutting your eyes and being mute, hoping that somehow, God’s looking into your sincere heart to know what you want; no. It means praying in tongues; praying in the language of the Spirit—a divine coded language. Your mind can’t interpret what you’re saying, but in the realm of the spirit, you’re speaking mysteries.
The devil and his cohorts of darkness are confounded when we pray in other tongues, for it’s an esoteric language for our direct communication with our heavenly Father. What a privilege and blessing to be able to access and speak forth divine mysteries and secrets from the realm of the Spirit. Blessed be God!
Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts (Zechariah 4:6).
Anyone can pray in the Name of Jesus, and also say something that’s covered by the Word of God, but these alone don’t guarantee results. That’s why some pray, but nothing happens, while some others say the same words and miracles take place. The first set of people spoke words that weren’t energized, communicated, inspired, and anointed by the Holy Spirit. As a result, they didn’t get what they asked for; their words were not powered by the Spirit.
I‘ve taught you two principles on prayer in our two previous lessons: “Praying In The Authority Of His Name” and “Praying By The Authority Of The Word,” yet, it’s so important that you make your requests by the power of the Holy Spirit. These three elements combine to make our prayer lives effective.
The power of the Holy Spirit is the missing element in many people’s lives, and they wonder why their prayers aren’t as effective as they should be. In Ephesians 5:18-19, the Apostle Paul tells us, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”
When you’re filled with the Spirit, you’ll bring the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit to bear on your words, and they’ll be impregnated with divine power! The anointing has to be on your words. That is what makes the difference. At the Healing School, for example, when we minister to the sick in the Name of Jesus, and on the basis of what the Word says, we do so by the power of the Holy Spirit. No wonder astounding healing miracles take place at every healing session.
In the book of Acts, you’ll observe these three. The Apostles ministered in the Name of Jesus, with the Word of God, and by the power of the Holy Spirit. That’s why they had such extraordinary results in their lives and ministry.
-GSW-