By The Power Of The Spirit
The Lord has really impressed on me lately how TOTALLY dependent we all must be on the power of the Holy Spirit as we stand for the deliverance and salvation of our husbands and wives, and the restoration of our marriages and families. We already know the Holy Spirit is a very important part of our walk and relationship with the Lord, but sometimes it’s way too easy to lose site of just how VITALLY important He really is. We need to realize that without the power of the Holy Spirit we are nothing and we can do nothing, because it is through the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus lives in us and we in Him, which is why John 15:5 says “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
So many conversations with FAM Fellowship members in recent weeks have been about the importance of understanding 1 Corinthians 2:13-14, because it says This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. So we would save ourselves and our spouses SO much frustration and aggravation if we’d remember that instead of getting upset when they’re totally blinded to the things we see so clearly. It’s only by the grace of God that we are not in their shoes and that we see the truth because of the power of the holy Spirit at work in us, and the above verses make it very clear how wrong and misguided we are to expect our spouses to see and understand what they’re not capable of understanding without the work and power of the holy Spirit. I’ve even seen that at work when ministering to someone standing for marriage restoration too, because I can say the same thing over and over again, and no matter how it seems to sink in, we always end up right back at the same place again. And then one day I’ll say the EXACT same thing one more time, and it’s like they heard it for the first time; like a light bulb came on! So if the Lord doesn’t give us a word through the power of the Holy Spirit, we don’t have the grace and strength we need to walk it out. That’s why the first step in standing for marriage restoration has to be a clear word from the Lord through the power of the Holy Spirit that He wants us to stand for our marriages, because that’s the ONLY way we’ll ever be able to do it. That’s why it’s a mistake to insist on talking about our stand to someone who doesn’t understand it. They didn’t get the word so they don’t have the grace or ability necessary to understand it.. And if the Holy Spirit is not at work, it isn’t going to register and we won’t get it or see it. So that tells me that it’s often a matter of timing, and the same thing is true about our spouses seeing the truth. When the time is right, according to God’s plan and not ours, the power of the Holy Spirit will move in their hearts and minds, and they’ll see what they were blinded to before. So it’s very important for us to pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to move in our husbands’ and wives” hearts, minds, situations and lives. And it’s easy to send forth the power of the Holy Spirit to work on our behalf for their salvation and deliverance, and the restoration of our marriages with simple prayers like “Dear Lord, please send forth the power of the Holy Spirit to work in my spouse’s heart and life today.” And we could do that many, many times a day, with that simple, but powerful prayer and others similar to it, which is something we all should make a much greater effort to do. How often do we say, there’s nothing we can do about it? Well, I’ve said it myself, but that’s wrong, because even though there isn’t anything we can do in our own power and might, we CAN pray and release the power of the Holy Spirit to make possible everything that looks impossible to us. And we need to remember that John 6:44 tells us “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. So we have to remember that NOTHING we do will work or cause our husbands and wives to get saved, because that only happens when the Holy Spirit draws them through His supernatural power. And since it’s so important for us to have a better understanding of the work and power of the Holy Spirit, the following verses will help us learn a lot more about that:
Jeremiah 31:3 – The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.
Isaiah 11:2 – The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD –
John 14:26 – But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
Zechariah 4:6 – So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty.
Acts 1:8 – But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
1 Thessalonians 1:4-6 – For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 – May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 2:3-5 – I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.
Then another verse that should help make it easier for us to release our spouses to do whatever they’re determined to do; no matter how wrong we know it is and no matter how much it hurts, is 1 Corinthians 5:4-5, which says When you are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present, hand this man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord. That seems to confuse some people, but I have no doubt it’s just the Lord telling us to take our hands off of our spouses and get out of the way so HE can do what needs to be done to change their hearts and get them to turn to Him and back to us!