Demonstration of the Spirit and of Power

1 Corinthians 2:4  And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

Where or whom do you place your faith?  Is your faith in the Federal government?  Is your faith in your pastor, teacher, apostle, prophet, or evangelist?  In the above passage, Paul reminds us of the source of wisdom from whence he spoke- Our Heavenly Father.  What was his proof?  The demonstration of the Spirit and Power.  Effectively he said “look at the fruit”.  Our Heavenly Father established the Law in the Book of Beginnings:

Genesis 1:11   Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth”; and it was so.

Our entire physical existence depends on this law.  The seed of plants and animals produce the necessary food to sustain our bodies throughout our lives on earth.  We rely on the continuation of this law two or three times everyday.  Some less and some more.

As I have said many times in the past we are called to be fruit inspectors.  Our Heavenly Father is an inspector and Jesus made it quite clear what the ramifications were in Matthew 7:

15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?

17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Trees that don’t bear fruit waste the resources they are consuming.  They rob the trees around them from needed resources to produce in a greater fashion.  In the financial world, I have read many who claim to be experts in investing.  They market their newsletters hoping to increase their readership, and cash flow.  The newsletters are effectively prophesying the future of certain investments.  If you track those investments over a long period you will find they were probably correct 50% of the time, not much different than the flip of a coin.  A question most people don’t ask is “Why are they promoting a newsletter if they are such experts in investing?  They would not need the money if their investments were really that successful!”

The wisdom, understanding, and knowledge of this world does not produce good fruit.  Our current economy is a testimony to that reality.  The raw data shows the U.S. is still in the “Great Recession” after several years of 0% interest rates.  Europe is on the ropes and Japan continues its “lost decades”.

Who should you listen to?  Our Heavenly Father!  Paul warns us of false prophets who produce “noise” and move our focus away from our direct relationship with Our Heavenly Father.  Those false prophets sell you on the notion that they have a certain direct communication link with Our Heavenly Father yet the fruit they produce in the area of prophecy is sorely lacking.  How do they continue to operate?  By the short memory of those that follow them. 

People have ceased being fruit inspectors as they continue to focus on the latest, greatest impending prophetic word.  Our politicians know all too well this reality.  Over one trillion dollars was spent on the war in Iraq and the warplanes are once again dropping bombs.  Their solution to the problem did not work a decade ago yet they are back at it again.

We have all been taken of advantage of by false prophets.  Their ability to instill fear and anxiety, pricking the soul with scenes of impending disaster, have temporarily stalled the path toward greater maturity.  I am reminded of the time when my son was young and playing soccer for the first time.  His team played at a soccer field close to train tracks.  They were in the middle of their game (aka controlled chaos) and suddenly a train came barreling through.  Play ceased as all the kids on the field were mesmerized by the arrival of the train blowing its whistle.  The parents knew better than to attempt to redirect their attention back to the game at hand until the train had passed.  Sometimes you must simply let time pass before you can continue the proper focus.

Are you being fruitful?  If not, cease what you are doing and wait on FATHER.  Remove the noise that plagues you.  Redirect your attention to those endeavors that produce fruit.  The Sons are awaiting the fruition of the fullness of their calling. Until then there is no need to “work up” some event in an effort to coerce Our Heavenly Father to respond.  We will all know when the demonstration of SPIRIT and power is at hand.  The inspection of fruit will prove it has arrived.

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