In 1 Samuel 9 we see that Saul was sent by his father to find some runaway donkeys. Taking a servant with him, Saul searched throughout the land. Finally, he got discouraged and was ready to give up the hunt. Then his servant told him about Samuel, a seer; maybe he could tell him where to find the donkeys.
Samuel, here, is a type of the Holy Spirit, who knows the mind of God; he has more on his mind than just direction. He knows Saul has been chosen by God to play a part in heaven’s eternal purposes!
The first thing Samuel did when Saul arrived was to call for a feast (see 1 Samuel 9:19). This is exactly what the Holy Spirit desires of us: to sit at the Lord’s table and minister to him—having quality time alone, hearing his heart.
Samuel asked Saul to clear his mind so they could commune together (1 Samuel 9:20–25). Samuel was saying, “Don’t focus on getting direction now—that’s all settled. There’s something more important at hand. You’ve got to know God’s heart—his eternal purposes!”
After that night of communion, Samuel asked Saul to send his servant out of the room, so they could have an intimate, face-to-face session (see 1 Samuel 9:27; 10:1).
Do you see what God is saying here? “If you really want to walk in the Spirit—if you really want my anointing—you need to seek more than direction from me. You need to come into my presence and get to know my heart, my desires! You see, I want to anoint you—to use you in my kingdom!”
Beloved, forget direction—forget everything else for now! Allow the Holy Spirit to teach you the deep hidden things of God. Stand still in his presence, and let him show you the very heart of the Lord. That is the walk of the Spirit in the highest form!
Spending time in the presence of the Lord produces a manifestation of Christ to a lost world.
“We faint not…but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God” (2 Corinthians 4:1–2). The apostle Paul states that we’re called to be a manifestation of truth. Of course, we know Jesus is the truth. So, what does Paul mean by saying that we’re to manifest Jesus?
Paul is speaking here of a visible expression. A manifestation is a “shining forth” that makes something clear and understandable. In short, Paul is saying we’re called to make Jesus known and understood to all people. In each of our lives, there should be a shining forth of the very nature and likeness of Christ.
Paul takes this concept of manifesting Christ even further. He says, we actually are God’s letters to the world: “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men…the epistle of Christ…written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart” (2 Corinthians 3:2–3). Our lives are letters written by the Holy Ghost and sent out to a lost world. And we’re being read continually by those around us.
How exactly do we become God’s letters to the world? It happens only by the work of the Spirit. At the moment we’re saved, the Holy Ghost imprints in us the very image of Jesus. And he continues shaping this image in us at all times. The Spirit’s mission is to form in us an image of Christ that’s so truthful and accurate, it will actually pierce people’s consciences.
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David Wilkerson (1931 – 2011)
Founder of Times Square Church in New York City with over 100 different languages spoken in the congregation. Wilkerson wrote many powerful books such as: The Vision and Cross and the Switchblade. His ministry was prophetic as God called him to be a watchman to the Church in North America. He gave clear messages on repentance to the Church.Wilkerson also founded Teen Challenge where there are hundreds of centres for Christ-centered drug recovery and addiction recovery. He also organized and spoke at pastors gatherings in many countries where he gave prophetic strong messages to encourage pastors and leaders.
Recommends these books by David Wilkerson:
The Vision and Beyond, Prophecies Fulfilled and Still to Come by David Wilkerson
Knowing God by Name: Names of God That Bring Hope and Healing by David Wilkerson
God's Plan to Protect His People in the Coming Depression by David Wilkerson
David Wilkerson is an American Christian evangelist, most well-known for his book The Cross and the Switchblade. He is also the founder of Times Square Church in New York, an interdenominational church.
Wilkerson is well-known for these early years of his ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in New York City in the 1950s and 1960s. He co-authored a book about his work with the New York drug addicts, The Cross and the Switchblade, which became a best-seller, selling over 50 million copies in over thirty languages since it was published in 1963. The book was included among the 100 most important Christian books of the 20th century.
For over four decades, Wilkerson's ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. He has authored over 30 books.
David Wilkerson is the founder and president of World Challenge, Inc., a nonprofit organization incorporated on September 22, 1971. Reverend Wilkerson, the author of over thirty inspirational books, is perhaps best known for his early days of ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn. His story is told in The Cross and the Switchblade, a book he co-authored which became a best-seller. (The story has been read by over 50 million people in some thirty languages and 150 countries since 1963. In 1969, a motion picture of the same title was released.)
For over four decades, Reverend Wilkerson's evangelistic ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. Throughout that time a distinctive characteristic of his work has been his direct efforts to reach the neediest members of the population with help for both body and soul. Even now, the almost 70 year-old minister often goes out alone or sometimes with an assistant to walk through the streets of New York City, along Broadway and Eighth Avenue or down 42nd Street and nearby "Crack Alley" on 41st Street. His mission is always to seek out the lost, the disoriented, and the addicted , to tell them of the power of the risen Christ to set them free.
David Wilkerson, born in Hammond, Indiana on May 19, 1931, was married in 1953 to Gwen Carosso. The Wilkersons' two sons are ministers, and their two daughters are married to ministers. They have 11 grandchildren. The Wilkersons served small pastorates in Scottsdale and Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, until Reverend Wilkerson saw a photograph in Life magazine of several New York City teenagers charged with murder. Moved with compassion he was drawn to the city in February 1959. It was at that time he began his street ministry to what one writer called "desperate, bewildered, addicted, often violent youth.