“When the Word and Spirit come together, there will be the biggest movement of the Holy Spirit the nation, and indeed the world, has ever seen.” Smith Wigglesworth
I want to be a man that is living grounded fully in the Word and led completely by the Spirit. There is a tension that is created when you want to be a Word and Spirit person. I believe it is in the heart of God that we would not be an either/or but rather a both/and. Consider what the Bible says about being “both/and” person and bringing this into our church and business cultures.
I recently attended the annual conference of the fellowship our church is a part of called Messenger Fellowship. A friend and mentor of mine, Dave Beauring, who is the President and Founder of Lionshare (Lionshare.org) and one of the founding fathers of Messenger Fellowship shared some thoughts on the Word and Spirit culture that were very encouraging.
- In the Beginning
- Gen 1 – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and the Spirit of God hovered…”
- John 1 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
- Source of Life
- John 1:4 – “In him (Word) was life and that life was the light of all mankind.”
- John 6:63 – “The Spiritgives life; The words I have spoken to you – they are full of the Spirit and life.”
- Dwelling Among Us
- John 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”
- Ephesians 2:22 – “…you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”
- The Spirit empowers The Word at Baptism (Mt.3:13-17).
- The Word sends The Spirit to His disciples (Jn.15:26).
- The Spirit brings Resurrection to The Word (Rom. 8:11).
- The Word follows the lead of The Spirit (Mt.4:1).
- The Word is the Scriptures ~ The Spirit an inner intuitive leading.
- The Word is our source of truth ~ The Spirit is our source of power.
- The Word feels more defined ~ The Spirit feels more dynamic.
- The Word serves as our ultimate reference point ~ The Spirit our greatest guiding point.
In the book “Holy Fire”, R.T. Kendall says this about a coming move of God marked by the Word and Spirit reality. “Isaac is coming. It will be a demonstration of what happens when the Word and Spirit come together. The simultaneous combination will result in spontaneous combustion. I believe that what is coming down the road will be greater than any movement of the Holy Spirit ever seen since Pentecost. It will cross denomination, geographical, cultural, and theological lines. The glory of the Lord will cover the earth as the water cover the sea. As the promise to Isaac was a hundred times greater than the promise to Ishmael, so what is coming will be a hundred times greater than anything we have ever seen (Genesis 17:18-20). As for Ishmael, we haven’t yet seen what God is going to do with his seed. I believe Muslims will be converted by the millions before it is over.”
Based on wiring and giftedness, we all have a natural leaning towards Word or Spirit. Are you stronger in the Word and stationary? Learn to flow with the Spirit. Are you stronger in the dynamic movings of the Spirit? Ground yourself deeper in the Word. It is a season of preparation for a great move of God that is ahead.