“Doth wisdom not cry? And understanding put forth her voice? I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge of witty inventions. Riches and honor are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. The Lord possessed me in the beginning…” Proverbs 8:1, 12, 18, 22. We can never and will never be wiser than God! No matter how intellectually sound we are, we cannot surpass the wisdom of God. The wisdom of God may seem foolish to the world but at the end of the day its extraordinary results leave mouths agape. The bible declares in 1 Corinthians 1:25 that “the foolishness of God is wiser than men.” God created the world by His infinite wisdom (Psalm 104:24). He created everything in its proper place, order and system of operation such that even scientist find it almost impossible to figure out. The bible says in Psalms 100:3, “know ye that the Lord he is God: it is He that hath made us and not we ourselves.” Thank God He made us, and not we ourselves, otherwise we would have created something that looks like a creature from horror movies!

In the previous series of this message, we stated various reasons why we need to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading. To view the previous post, click here. We will move on in this second series on following the Leadership of the Holy Spirit to talk about the first way by which the Holy Spirit leads his people: the Inner Witness. “The Spirit beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” Romans 8:16 This form of the leadership of the Holy Spirit is called the Inward Witness because the Holy Spirit confirms a certain truth, step we want to take or direction in which we want to move by giving us peace in our hearts or withdrawing peace from our hearts about the issue. This method of Gods leading is considered as the basic way by which God leads his children because that’s how he confirms in our hearts that we have become his children after we confess Jesus as Lord. Most times, God doesn’t send an angel with a heavenly hymn on his lips or give us a major spiritual experience to assure us that we have become his children, rather, we just have an unshakable knowing in the pit of our stomachs (or in our hearts) that our sins are washed away and that our names are written in the book of life. An illustration of this method of Gods leadership will drive home the point more clearly:

The issue of following the leadership of the Holy Spirit is one that many Christians desire to understand in greater detail. There are a number of reasons why this is of major importance to the believer; one of which is the fact that our followership with the blessed Third person of the Godhead is our ticket into the world of the supernatural, the miraculous and into a realm of abundance that can defy the harshest of conditions. The bible makes a very daring statement regarding the sons of God. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Romans 8:14 Taking a critical look at this verse of scripture, we come to understand a great truth regarding the family of God. We understand that only those who are led by the Spirit of God or to put it in reverse order, those who follow the Spirit of God; can claim to be the Sons of God (notice it does not refer to the children of God. Different criteria exist for one to be a child of God). It can thus be implied that our ability to follow the Spirit of God, our sensitivity to his leadings and how well we understand how he leads his children is the main determining factor in our becoming his Son.

“In the modern age, Information is the commodity of kings”.-Anthony Robbins As a people we have experienced different stages or evolutions of human existence, where we moved from one stage to another. In those stages, we ruled based on the tool of power. For example, money is what fueled the industrial society were the upper class ruled. As a result of the fact that they had a lot of it, they dominated the world. Shortly after the industrial age, we moved into the informational age were the fuel for progress, i.e. the power, is Knowledge. One has now come to see a new class structure divided by those who must function out of ignorance. This new class has its power not from money, nor land, but from knowledge. In Hosea 4:6, the bible said “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge”.

A fire can be described as situations or temptations around us that seem too much to bear. Looking at the whole scenario of Moses in the burning bush, the fire ordinarily was purposed to destroy whatever or anything it came across; whether big or small. This bush didn't burn in Exodus 3:1-8. Why? Because God was in that fire. Taking a look at the three Hebrew men in the book of Daniel and Chapter 3, we see that they were thrown in the fire, but they were not burnt and neither was their hair singed, because someone; 'a fourth person', God, was right there in the fire. The fire didn't do what it would have done ordinarily.

I found myself in a place that was stale, It had nothing to do with my environment. I found myself in a place that was pale, And it had everything to do my spirit. A place of emptiness, A place of nothingness, A place of vast, dark echoes. I looked and searched for a break, A streak of light, a crack in the woods. I walked around to find respite, But where I sought peace, there the war began. Where I sought forgiveness, hearts were hardened. Where I sought companionship, I found loneliness. I sat down to think…

As we come to the end of this Easter break, many thoughts cross my mind regarding its meaning and purpose for the believer. Just to set the records straight, the Easter season is not meant to herald the commencement of spring; even though they fall within the same time frame. Neither is it a celebration created to relieve our hard working citizens from the stress of office work; even though it is also a welcome gift. Without a clear definition of issues, there is the risk of neglecting the true meaning of Easter. The Easter season is the season for the celebration of life, for it was in this season many years ago that our Lord died a most gruesome death on the cross for our sake. Nevertheless, we celebrate not because he died but because he arose from the dead. We have the assurance of scriptures, backed by the eternal integrity of God that because he arose, we also rise with him. This is why the baptism of water is so important. It is a symbol of our death with Jesus Christ and also our resurrection with him.

"I am finally learning this; it is not something I verbalize from a pulpit or write in a book. I am finally learning that his sovereign plan is the best plan. That whatever I entrust to him, he can take care of better than I. that nothing under his control can ever be out of control. That everything I need, he knows about in every detail. That he is able to supply, to guide, to start, to stop, to sustain, to change and to correct in his time and for his purposes. When I keep my hands out of things, his will is accomplished, his name is exalted and his glory is magnified." - Intimacy With The Almighty by Charles Swindoll.

As human beings, we tend to naturally desire to be in control of every area and aspect of our lives. We receive monthly reports from our banks on our financial status, reports from our doctors on the state of our health, etc. we also tend to worry when we do not have all the facts we need to know the direction in which our lives are going. As a result, we tend to enter into worry, anxiety ad even fear of the future. However, this is contrary to how the Lord works because he works with men on the basis of faith and not sight.

The bible records what Jesus said about this in the book of Matthew:

"Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than them? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?...wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, o ye of little faith?" Matthew 6:26-30

Jesus made us understand that when we walk in anxiety, worry or fear, we are walking in unbelief. Moreover, our worry does little to nothing about the situation. However, if we choose to give our expectations and circumstances to him, we can be rest assured that he will take charge and cause it to bring about his perfect will.

It is important for us to begin to believe in the things we profess. If we indeed believe that God is all powerful, then we should not fear what the devil or our enemies may be planning against us; because they most certainly will not come to fruition. If we really believe that our God is all knowing, there is no reason why we should doubt his leading, direction or instructions; because he loves us and will always lead us in the path of safety, protection and progress.

Let us therefore keep our hands out of the things he is working on; let us chose to trust him. Trust is a choice; a choice to believe in something or someone even if it places you in a position of vulnerability. Nothing in Gods control ever goes out of control. If you let him take charge of your life, there is no way your life will ever go out of control. Make the choice today.

Have you ever thought about how being in the very presence of God is like? Standing in the very courts of heaven with the hosts and angels of glory and beholding the beauty of his majesty and splendor and carrying that presence with you every day of your life as you go about your daily business. Most times, people think of a bright and misty cloud with flashes of lightening coming out of it when they think of the presence of God. However, this is not a very clear picture of what the presence of God is like because His presence speaks of his nature and the availability of his person. Think about it for a few seconds!

The presence of a king or political figure refers to the availability of the nature of that person. For example, being in the presence of the president of your country implies having access to him, his personality, nature and also his resources. You get to ask him questions that others can't ask, see him personally and partake of the food, pleasures and resources that he partakes of. In much the same way, being in the presence of the Lord means you have access to his resources, his voice, his direction, his healing power, etc. Also, whatever cannot stand the presence of God has to leave when you come into his presence.

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." Psalm 23:4

Every time the Word of God admonishes us not to fear, it ties the confidence we are to have with the availability of the presence of God to us. Think about the presence of God for some time. Think about the majestic splendor of a glorious God who created the entire universe by speaking it into reality. The bible says that he holds the seven seas in the hollow of his hands, he weighs the mountains in a scale and they amount to little than a speck of dust to him. In fact, the whole universe is less than a drop of water in a bucket before him (Isaiah 40:12-23). Jesus promised us before he left the earth that he would never leave nor forsake us. That means that his abiding presence is with us.

Many times in life, we come face to face with situations and challenges that seem impossible. We face situations and circumstances in which it seems like the only way out is to take the back door; to lie, cheat, steal or simply do nothing. I have come to realize that in some cases, inaction could be as disastrous as negative decisions. We have often heard people lament about how powerless they are regarding certain weaknesses that they have. They shrug their shoulders; throw their hands in the air and say: "I had no chance against it".

"Therefore, bretheren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds 0f the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." Romans 8:12-14.

Many years ago while in primary school, I misplaced a treasured toy of one of my classmates. After expressing his disappointment in me in very clear terms, he demanded that I pay him the value of this toy of his so he could buy another one. Not wanting to get into a fight with my much muscular classmate, I agreed to pay him a certain amount every day of school till the debt was fully paid off. In much the same way, before we became Christians, we were debtors to the flesh; having to do everything it dictated to us. Simply put, the flesh is any thought pattern or action that does not line up with the thought pattern or desired action God expects of you. We owed it to the flesh to act, speak and think in the manner it dictated through the various scenarios of life. However, after we became followers of Jesus, filled with his Spirit, we no longer owed the flesh such allegiance. As Christians, we owe it to the Spirit of God to act, speak and think in the way he dictates; all of which is contained and expressed in his Word.