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In The Eye of the Storm
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Part II Chapter 9 Needed: Power From On High God wants us to manifest the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) as we minister in the power of the Spirit. We need to be people who show the mark of Jesus on our lives and characters. It is especially important that a Christian worker displays the character of Jesus before he is given leadership responsibility in the body of Christ. We talked earlier about the need of a potential leader serving within the cell group to allow God to shape his character as he begins to bear fruit. This maturing process simply means we allow God to continue to transform us more and more into His image. Importance of Bearing Fruit It is said that "a sapling of today is a noteworthy tree of tomorrow." How does a believer grow from a young sapling to a mature tree that bears fruit in season? What important things need to happen before a Christian can be effective in ministry? In order for a tree to bear any fruit at all, the growing conditions must be favorable. Before a believer can bear spiritual fruit, his growth, like a tree, is contingent upon favorable conditions. He needs to have solid spiritual encounters with Jesus that shape and mold his life. His heart must be open to God and filled up with the Holy Spirit. How does a tree grow into fiber, bud, blossom and finally mature fruit? First of all, a tree begins as a tiny seed planted in good soil. Let's compare this to a Christian's new birth. The new Christian (seed) has been planted in God's Word (soil) where he can begin to grow. But like a tree, he needs more than good soil. Trees can only exist where there is an adequate supply of moisture, sun and air. As a new Christian grows spiritually, his roots begin to spread out and anchor him in the faith. In the body of Christ, teachers are the ones who often help to grow those roots out in a new believer's life by expounding God's Word and anchoring the believer with a firm foundation. As believers, we need to sink the roots of our being deep down into God's Word so we can develop a root system of faith, love and obedience. The roots absorb water and nutrients from the soil which passes upwards to the leaves where photosynthesis occurs. The leaves are food factories where sugar and starches are made from the soil water and from carbon dioxide derived from the air. Excess water not needed by the leaves is returned to the atmosphere in an invisible vapor—oxygen. Jesus, Our Source All of the energy necessary to run this process comes from the sunlight. Without the sunlight, no amount of moisture or nutrients from the soil could sustain the life of the tree.
Jesus is the sunlight for the believer. Without Him there would be no life! Like a tree which grows lush green foliage and stretches its limbs out seeking the sun, Jesus causes us to flourish and grow as the divine Word enters out heart and we know His holy presence within us. We need to live a life of entire and unceasing dependence upon Jesus for our strength and growth.
As the tree continues to grow, it needs to be protected from insect injury if it is to function normally and contribute its part to a vigorous and beautiful growth. In the body of Christ, both in the cell group and corporate setting, pastors are the ones who shepherd and care for the people so that wounds are healed and people are able to triumph over every obstacle that hinders them from growing. Pastors lovingly watch over their "trees" and make sure they are getting plenty of good "soil, fertilizer and moisture."
During the course of a tree's lifetime, branches will also need to be pruned back. This pruning shapes the tree and increases vigor and life to it. Other times, whole limbs will need to be cut off. Removing this dead wood will throw strength back into the remaining limbs.
Although drastic as it may seem at the time, Christians must be pruned from time to time so that self dies and they can be refined and cleansed as they yield themselves more fully to the Lord. This will produce new spiritual growth. If an area of a believer's life becomes diseased, it will have to be cut away.
Sometimes the cares of this world cause a believer to begin trusting in his own strength rather than God's, and dead wood results. Other times, temptations will lead a believer to sin, and an ugly withered branch is left hanging from his tree. Many times, the prophets in the church have the spiritual eyes to point out these dead limbs in our lives. They will help to get us back into shape as we totally surrender to God's pruning and yield ourselves to a life of entire obedience to God—one that is pleasing to Him.
By this time, the tree has had time to grow great and strong. It is now beautiful and blossoming—in its springtime season. Plump and well nourished buds indicate excellent growth during the preceding season and a promise of a good crop to come. Yes, the tree has an even greater destiny—that of bearing fruit. Scripture tells us if we abide in Jesus, we will bear much fruit (John 15:5). Fruit bearing is the product of a Christian's inner life. A Christian rooted and grounded in God's Word and refreshed by the presence of Jesus shining within him in the person of the Holy Spirit will naturally bear fruit. Pollination Paramount! But something important needs to happen first. Before a tree can bear fruit, the blossom must be pollinated. If the blooming tree is not pollinated, there will be no fruit in the summertime. If there is no fruit, the tree cannot reproduce itself because there would be no seeds to continue the process. So you see, the pollination is key to bearing any fruit at all. Trees are cross-pollinated by the wind, insects or birds. Before a Christian can bear fruit, he needs to be "pollinated" by the Holy Spirit. Just as a bee lights upon the flower to pollinate it, the Holy Spirit comes upon the believer to empower him for service. Empowered for Service Although every born-again Christian has the Spirit living within him, he has not necessarily received the Holy Spirit coming upon him to empower or pollinate him for service. When we receive the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to reside within us. He indwells us or lives in us, "the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you" (John 14:17). When the Holy Spirit comes upon us, we are empowered for service, and God can manifest His power through us. We can enter a new dimension of the Spirit's presence and power in our lives. Without this supernatural encounter with the Holy Spirit, a Christian worker will have to operate on a "work hard and keep on going" level of existence instead of walking in Holy Spirit power and anointing. Having the Holy Spirit come upon us is not a once and done thing. That would be like fueling an automobile once and never fueling it again! An automobile eventually runs out of gas. So do we! We need to be filled and refilled with the Holy Spirit so we can live in the daily vibrance He imparts to us. When we serve as a result of the fruit of the Holy Spirit empowering us, will we see spiritual results. Jesus Himself set the example for us. We have no record of the life of Jesus from the ages of twelve to thirty. But at age 30, Jesus began his public ministry by being baptized in water and in the Spirit: "And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, 'You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased' (Luke 3:22). Why didn't Jesus begin his ministry before this point? It appears the Father knew He was only ready for ministry when the Holy Spirit came upon Him, thus giving Him the power He needed to minister. He had to first receive a greater measure of the Spirit before he could heal the sick, speak with authority to the Pharisees and turn water into wine. If we want to follow Jesus' example, we need to receive the same empowering of the Holy Spirit to come upon us in order to be effective in ministry. When we are empowered by the Holy Spirit, multiple needs will be met, entire communities of believers will be built up and the lost will be drawn into a loving relationship with Jesus Christ. When a leader is empowered and anointed for service, he enters a working relationship with other leaders in the body of Christ. Only then can he truly be "fruitful in every good work" (Colossians 1:10).
Phases of Christian Growth
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He is no longer simply in a social relationship where he participates in solely social interaction. Now, there is work involved, and it often gets down to the nitty-gritty of life. A good leader will be able to distinguish the difference between his social relationships and working relationships with his colleagues. He will only be fruitful if his working relationship remains a healthy one, filled with good communication and a willingness to work together in the power of the Holy Spirit.
When each member of Christ's body is overflowed with the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ is enabled to build His church through us. Without the Holy Spirit enveloping our lives, we are attempting to serve God in our natural energy. We will find we lack the power to get the job done.
With the empowering of the Holy Spirit, a Christian can be fully equipped to build the church and effect the world. The importance of walking in daily Holy Spirit power cannot be understated. The world is in need of Christians who will demonstrate the supernatural power of God to people who desperately need the life He offers. Surrendering to the Holy Spirit will enable God's power to be manifested, and lives will be impacted forever with God's rich love.
Reproduction: Fruit That Lasts
As we mentioned before, a tree cannot bear fruit without first being pollinated. When a Christian is "pollinated" by the Holy Spirit, he will bear fruit that lasts forever, because that fruit will reproduce itself and the cycle will continue on and on. The seed from the fruit will produce another tree. After a Christian is "pollinated" and walking in Holy Spirit power, he will reproduce new Christians.
Jesus' ministry bore fruit that lasted. Jesus told His disciples, " . . I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain . . . " (John 15:16).
Like Jesus, we will leave a mark on eternity with lasting fruit. Paul speaks of this kind of fruit when he says, "My preaching was not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power; that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."
By now we are beginning to see the object lesson to be learned from a tree as it grows from a young sapling to a majestic enduring beauty. As a new believer grows and blossoms in God's kingdom, and bears fruit, he is fulfilling the calling God has for His life. When he allows the Holy Spirit to come upon him and becomes full of God and His power, he will produce fruit that will last. God never intended for any tree to bear fruit that would not last. He wants all believers to live in a close, abiding relationship with Him, so that they can bear much fruit and the cycle can continue forever—people are reproduced for the kingdom of God!
God made a variety of trees, producing a variety of fruit. As the Body of Christ we each need to know what God has anointed us to do, and then all work together to do our job so that God's eternal purposes can be fulfilled and His church can be built.
Laying on of Hands'
I want to briefly touch here on the subject of the laying on of hands because of its importance of identifying and commissioning leaders for ministry in the body of Christ. For example, when an apostle lays hands on a person to ordain them as a bishop/overseer for a church, he is identifying that person as an overseer and commissioning him to do the job. I am including the subject of the laying on of hands in this chapter on the Holy Spirit because of the importance of being Spirit-filled when laying hands on another.
According to David Blomgren's book, Prophetic Gathering In the Church, we impart something supernatural through the laying on of hands:
That which is imparted by God through the laying on of hands of Spirit-filled believers is greater than that which could be imparted through natural man. Natural man cannot himself impart through the laying on of hands that which he does not himself possess . . . the impartation of the laying on of hands is a spiritual impartation. It affects not only the physical, but soul and spirit as well. A new dimension of supernatural and spiritual impartation through God's empowerment is added to the Spirit filled believer when he lays hands on another. This dimension is not possible in the natural man. 11
The laying on of hands was regularly applied to the New Testament examples of ordination and sending someone forth in ministry. We have an example of the apostles laying on of hands to commission deacons in Acts 6:1-7. In Acts 13:3 the leaders of the church laid hands on other leaders to send them out. Timothy (I Timothy 4:14) and Paul (II Timothy 1:6) were both ordained by the laying on of hands.
It is evident that the laying on of hands to ordain a person into ministry should not be performed until the fruits of the Spirit are growing and alive in that person's life. The person must display the fruits and have the anointing of God on his life for a particular ministry before he is ready for leadership responsibility in the corporate church
Scriptures also warn us in I Timothy 5:22, "Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people's sins; keep yourself pure." When hands are laid on someone who is involved in some secret sin, we are becoming partakers of this sin by identifying with him by the laying on of hands. That is why it is so important to know a person well before we ordain them to ministry. When a person is bearing good fruit we have an accurate measuring stick to use.
Operating in the Anointing of Holy Spirit
As we allow the Holy Spirit to live fully within us and begin to bear the fruits of the Spirit, we will be able to serve the church of Christ in boldness and power.
Without the Holy Spirit's power flowing out from us, we cannot hope to make a lasting impact on the world. But, when we move out in the Holy Spirit's power and anointing, He will guide us and minister through us, giving us the strength to do His will.
Leaders who have the job of equipping the saints need to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit because their public ministries affect many people and they need all of the Holy Spirit's strength to walk uprightly and justly. The Holy Spirit will enable and provide strength to pastors, teachers, evangelists, and overseers, energizing them in their jobs.
In the early church, the ministry of an apostle was followed by supernatural signs and wonders performed by the Holy Spirit: "Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds" (II Corinthians 12:12). The crucial nature of an apostle's job—designing and laying the foundations for the church—needs the supernatural element performed by the Holy Spirit in order to be effective.
I believe that all of the equipping jobs, and especially the apostles' and prophet's jobs, need the supernatural empowering of the Holy Spirit to function properly in today's church just as they did in the apostolic church. Designing and navigating today's church becomes critically important in light of Jesus' words that He will return for a church (the bride) without spot or wrinkle.
It seems safe to say that a glorious church such as this will need apostles and prophets who can operate successfully only through the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit. How could they do their jobs otherwise?
© Home Fellowship Leaders, Int'l.
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