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_________________________________________________________________________ VOL.1/NO.2 FAITH LANDMARKS MINISTRIES-I Dec-Feb 99 _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ STEPS TO RECEIVE ANOINTING Dear Beloved in Christ, Its God's grace that has brought us back to you once again. I was really encouraged by your letters, phone calls and emails regarding our previous issue. I give all the glory to the Almighty living God. In the previous issue I wrote briefly about anointing. Many of you asked me to write in detail, actually the same thing happened over the radio, recently I was preaching the same message but I did not have enough time. God willing I will write a book on anointing. Many people are confused about the anointing and the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit is a person and the anointing is the power to do a particular work. Anointing is the supernatural equipment for the job to be done. Anointing is a tool. There is a difference between the Omni presence of God and the manifesting presence of God. The manifesting presence brings the anointing of God. Holy Spirit is the one who anoints people. He doesn't anoint organizations but he anoints individuals. If you have still not understood the difference between the anointing and the Holy Spirit, I have written a book on Holy Spirit, that will help you. My dear co-laboures in Christ, its good to know about the anointing but its better to have the anointing of God to operate in our lives and ministry. Now we know anointing is the cutting edge for our ministry. In this issue I am writing some of the basic steps to receive the anointing I believe this is the most important base of our Christian life and for our ministry. FORD STEPS TO RECEIVE ANOINTING There are different steps to receive anointing. But in brief, I am going to use just two steps to explain how to receive the anointing. We are going to see from the word of God, how Jesus Christ received anointing in his life. Many of us think Jesus was anointed because he is the Son of God, No! When Jesus came into this world He came as an ordinary man Philippians chapter two says. He was hundred percent God and hundred percent man. Because he became a man he needed the anointing to do his earthly ministry. Let us see how Jesus Christ received the anointing. Luke 4:18-19 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. The above verse says Jesus took the book of Isaiah and read. And the verse says "he has anointed me". And Jesus said "this day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears". Here we see Jesus was anointed. But what did he do to receive the anointing of God? Before this scripture could be full filled, Jesus had to pray all through his life. He had to fast and pray for forty days for forty months of ministry. Right from the small age he spent a lot of time in prayer. At the age of twelve Jesus and his parents went to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. The bible says Jesus did not came looking for him after three days, this is what he said. Luke 2:49 49 "Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"(NIV) What was his father's house? Jesus answers this question in Mk.11: 15-17 My house shall be called the house of prayer. What ever he did he did with prayer. Before choosing the disciples he spent all night praying. He started with prayer and ended with prayer. PRAYER IS THE KEY FOR ANOINTING The first step to receive anointing is prayer. We need to spend time with God. We do a lot of things for Christ but we don't do it with him. When I say prayer I mean quality time with God. We as ministers are called, chosen and ordained by God not only to preach and heal the sick or to cast out devils, but the bible says in Mark 3:14 -15 14 And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, 15 And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils: The foremost reason for God to ordain us is that we might be with him. A man of God once said that when we kneel before God we can stand before the people and the powers of the enemy. When I say prayer, I mean the prayer that brings the fire of God. The bible says in II Chro 7:1 when King Solomon prayed the fire of the Lord came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices. King Solomon did not pray a selfish prayer but he interceded for the people of Israel. God is looking for people who will stand in the gap. Eze. 22:30 This type of prayer brings the fire of God. UNANSWERED PRAYER OF ELIJAH We know that when prophet Elijah challenged the children of Israel and King Ahab on mount Carmel for the Lord is God or Baal. The people of Baal offered the sacrifice, but there was no fire from heaven to burn the sacrifice. So Elijah also offered sacrifice and he prayed to God for the fire of God to fall on the sacrifice, but the fire did not come after his prayer. I King :18:36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. The reason is he prayed a selfish prayer. See the above Word of God which tells us about his prayer. He prays "I am the servant, I have done all these things". When I (ego) takes the throne your prayers are not heard. Watch how he prays the second time in verse 37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. There is no I (ego) but all to the Lord. People may know that thou art the Lord God and thou hast turned their heart back again, after the prayer the fire of the Lord came and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and licked up the water. Instead of saying the fire of the LORD came, we can say God himself came. Because God is a consuming fire.Heb.12: 29 The nature of the Holy Fire is, it consumes every thing that is unholy and glorifies every thing that is Holy. The prayer of a man that brings results is a man that has an intimate relationship and fellowship with God. The Power of Jesus' Prayer I Baptism of Jesus: Luke 3:21-22 21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, 22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased. Everybody was baptised by John the Baptist and went out of the river happily but after the baptism of Jesus Christ he immediately prayed. See the results of his prayer. 1.The heaven was opened. The prayer of Jesus Christ opened the shut heaven. From that moment onwards heaven did not close; it is opened even today. Before Stephen could be marytred he said I see the heavens opened . Acts 7:56 When Peter was on the housetop he saw a vision, he said "I saw a open heaven" - Acts 10:11 2.The Holy Spirit descended upon him. 3.Father testified. "Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased". II The mount of Transfiguration: Luke 9: 28-35 Jesus took Peter, John and James to pray, let us see the result of his prayer. 1.The fashion of his countenance was altered. The man who spends time with God, even his countenance changes. We see Moses when he came down from mount Sinai after 40 days with God, his face was radiating. Bible says Stephen's face looked like an angel. 2.His raiment was white and glistering. This is the garment of salvation. 3.Two men came to discuss with our Lord Jesus Christ about the crucification. When we pray God sends his angels or his people to comfort or to help us. 4.Sleeping disciples woke up. When we pray our sleeping associates or co-workers will wake up. 5.The voice of the Father is heard. Jesus spent quality time with God every day, early in the morning. That is how he received his anointing and ministered to the people, the whole day. Even the prayer of the disciples were powerful and brought results. Acts 2:1 When the disciples were in one accord praying the Holy Spirit came upon them. Acts 4:31 When the disciples prayed the place shook. But most of the time our body shakes more than the place. Prayer brings the power of God in our life and in our ministry. Anointing is never taught but it is caught by spending time in his presence. Anointing does't come when we preach about prayer or hear about prayer or write about prayer but it comes when WE PRAY. HATING INIQUITY IS THE KEY FOR ANOINTING The second step to receive anointing is to hate iniquity. Heb 1:9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. The bible says Jesus hated iniquity because of that God anointed him above thy fellows. . If we need anointing we need to hate iniquity. What is iniquity? The weakness towards sin. The evil born within us that breeds transgressions is iniquity. Iniquity is the breeding ground for sin. Actually iniquity precedes sin. Sin is actual breaking of the law,but Iniquities are sinful habits and traits. Some of the iniquities are to lie, steal, cheat, gamble, drink, exaggerate, gossip, hate, covet, lust, greed,, jealousy, rebelliousness, etc. In order to receive anointing we need to deal with iniquities in our lives. God looks at the heart and he knows all our inward thoughts and desires. Psalmist says in Psalms 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. Iniquity keeps you away from receiving the anointing. You can loose the anointing when iniquity enters in. Ezek 28:14-15 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. Lucifer was an anointed cherub, when iniquity entered in him, to steal the glory of God. He lost every thing. James 1:15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. The word `conceive' reminds me of a woman being conceived (pregnant). When a woman is pregnant she can do two things. 1.She can allow the baby in her womb to grow. or 2.She can abort the baby from her womb.If she has to abort she has to do it in the early stages,otherwise it is dangerous for her life. When she is conceived nobody knows expect her. She may pretend to be a virgin. Friends, In the same way when lust is conceived, we can do two things. 1.we can allow the lust to grow. or 2.We can abort the lust that is conceived. If we abort the lust that is conceived in the early stage it is good, if you want to do it in the later stage it is very dangeours. When the lust is conceived nobody knows except the individual. Out wardly we may act spiritual and preach well. Holiness is the character of God and we his servants need to live a holy life. When Aaron went into the holy place he had a gold plate on his fore head and this is what was written on it HOLINESS TO THE LORD. I believe God cannot use a person who is unclean and a person who is living in sin. 2 Tim 2:20-21 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. 21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. If we need to be an honourable vessel, we need to purge ourselves from these. What are these? The bible refers to many things in chapter two. But one thing I want to emphasis is verse 19, we need to hate iniquity. God anoints people who hates iniquity. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. Friends let us ask God for his strength to spend more time in prayer and to hate iniquity, so that we will be honorable and anointed vessels. Dear brothers and sisters we want to wish you a happy Christmas and Anointed new year 99. We will continue to pray for you. Uphold us in your personal time of prayer. COMING ISSUES ON ANOINTING: Double portion of anointing Manifestations of the anointing Types of anointing FLM-INDIA PUBLICATIONS: Books:- CONFESSION BRINGS POSSESSION THE HOLY SPIRIT Tracts:- Am I righteous! Baptism of the Holy Spirit Cassettes:- Audio & Vedio English and Tamil messages FLM-I offers Four months Spiritfilled residential Bible course for christian workers. Starting in the year 1999. 100%Scholarship available. P.S. If any of your friends or co-workers are interested in receiving this Free magazine please write to the below address. Send your prayer requests, testimonies and letters to: FAITH LANDMARKS MINISTRIES - INDIA P.B. No:3341,M.S.Nagar Post Bangalore - 560033 South India Tel / Fax: 5450249 Email: [email protected] Internet Address: http://westwood.fortunecity.com/hillfiger/63 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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AXE HEAD ___________________________________________________________________ VOL.1/No 1 FAITH LANDMARKS MINISTRIES-INDIA SEPT-NOV 98 ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ From Editors desk Dear Saints of God, It�s my privilege to write to you in this fashion. As an Evangelist and a bible teacher, I travel to different churches and different parts of India. One thing that I saw or learnt is that the people are hungry for Anointing, especially the young people. Even ministers are hungry for anointing. Infact, I myself am hungry for the anointing. Because of the hunger for the anointing, many times we miss the Word of God, and go behind the manifestations. As a matter of fact, we need to follow the manifester. In this issue and in the coming issues I am going to deal with Anointing. Lets get rid of every preconceived notion. Its time to concentrate on the Word of God. Only the Word of God can set us free from doubt and unbelief. It�s my prayer that we will move in the anointing of God and take this nation of India for the glory of God. With Love and prayer Evangelist Ford Before having the anointing to operate in your life and ministries, you must know What is Anointing? With out knowing what is anointing, you cannot receive the Anointing. Today many people are confused about Anointing and many people see some thing and conclude that to be anointing. Many people think anointing is shouting. Let me tell you that Shouting or screaming is not anointing, Shaking is not anointing. Continuous preaching without a gap is not anointing. Cracking jokes while preaching is not anointing. Actions cannot do much, but anointing can do a lot. Are we concentrating on anointing or actions? Friends its high time to move in the anointing of God! To know what is anointing we need to get into the Word of God. WHAT IS ANOINTING? Isaiah:10:27 And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. According to the above verse anointing means burden REMOVING, yoke DESTROYING power of God is called Anointing. If you want to know whether there is Anointing in your meetings, all you need to check is that if the burden is removed from people�s lives, it may be a burden of sin which satan has placed or yoke of sickness that satan has placed over people�s lives. Satan places his yoke over the people, so that he can control people from growing in the knowledge of the Word of God. Only the anointing removes the burden and only the anointing destroys the yoke. Anointing does not break the yoke but it destroys it. If broken it could be mended but not the destroyed ones. II King 6:1-7 We are going to bring the above verses to life application. Many times we have considered the matter in the above verses as only a miracle. But as a minister we are going to see more than that. Here Elisha represents a master or a leader, but we are going to take Elisha as Jesus Christ (Elisha is not Jesus Christ) And the sons of prophets as pastors, Evangelist or church leaders. Keeping that in mind we are going to mediate on the word of God. Verse 1-2 And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. The sons of the prophets came to the master i.e. Elisha, and told him that the place where they were dwelling was too small. They not only told him but they even had a solution for the problem. The remedy was, they wanted to go by the side of river Jordan, cut trees and put up a big shed. TWO DIFFERENT WAYS TO BUILD A SHED 1.By stealing beams: We can steal beams from the neighbouring sheds and put up a nice shed. But the only problem is stolen beams will be of different sizes. One will be short and the other tall. You cannot build the way you want to build. But you will be forced to build your shed according to the size of the (stolen) beams. The stolen beams will always dictate your building. 2.By going to forest: The second way is, we can go to the forest or to the riverside cut down the trees, according to the size and shape we want for our building. This is what the sons of the prophet did. TWO WAYS OF CHURCH GROWTH: 1.We can go to other churches and steal believers and make our church to grow. But the only problem is, stolen believers will dictate your church. This way it will be very difficult to discipline the church. One will say we need to have testimonies every week, the other will say, we need to pray before taking the offering. Stolen believers will try to rule the church. 2. There�s one more way we can build the church, which I believe a lot of pastors do. That�s by going to highways and byways. If you want your church to grow get out of the four walls. A great man of God Reinhard Bonnke says �you cannot catch fish in your bath tub�. We need to go to the river or sea. We can find a lot of fish only in the sea or ocean. If we fish in the bath tub we can find only pieces of soap. We need to go to the street corners and look for souls. You can be sure that these are the souls, which will bring results. PLAN SANCTIONED Verse 3 And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. As leaders we have a lot of plans to improve the church. Not only plans, we have remedies for the problems too. In the same way the sons of the prophets had a plan and remedy for their problem. But one guy was different from the others. He goes to the master (Elisha) and asks him to accompany them. Elisha went with them. Even in our ministry though we have lot of plans we need our master the Lord JESUS CHRIST. If Elisha did not go with them just imagine what would have been the condition of the guy who lost the axe head. SLIP OF THE AXE HEAD Verse 5 But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed. As one of the sons of the prophet was cutting the tree, the axe head slipped off the handle and fell into the river Jordan. Only the axe head slipped off, but the handle was with him. He could have still acted as if he was cutting the tree just by lifting up and down. But the tree will not fall at the end of the day. The axe head is the cutting edge. With out the cutting edge we can do nothing. When King Saul lost his anointing he did not want others to know about it I Samuel 15:30 Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God. This guy did no throw the axe head but it slipped while he was cutting the tree. He was not careful enough to watch the axe head. He was only busy with his work. AXE HEAD REPRESENTS THE ANOINTING The axe head represents the anointing of God. In the ministry the cutting edge is the anointing. Without the cutting edge we can do nothing. With out the anointing souls will not be added to the church. We may have the handle and pretend as if we have the anointing. Friends, we may shout and do all kinds of acrobatics in front of the congregation. We may beat the pulpit and do all actions- nothing is going to change. Only the anointing can set people free from the burden that satan has placed over their lives and only the anointing can destroy the yoke that satan has placed over the people. CAN RETAIN THE LOST ANOINTING Verse 6 And the man of God said where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim. Verse 5 says The man who lost the axe head cried to the master and said it was a borrowed one. Friends and ministers if you have lost the anointing of God, or the joy of salvation get back to your master the Lord Jesus Christ and tell him "I lost the anointing of God". This man says the axe was borrowed. Pastor Larry Huggins says this, the axe head is not his own, but some body has entrusted it to him, that he may make use of it. Yes, the anointing that you and me have is not ours, it is given to us, it is given by our Lord Jesus Christ and we need to keep it safe. Here we see the master Elisha asking where it fell. And the man showed the place. In the same way God will definitely ask - Son or daughter where did you loose it? Only you would know where you lost it. STICK REPRESENTS THE CROSS Then Elisha cut down the stick and cast it where it fell. If you have lost the anointing only the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ can bring it back. When the axe head started to float on the water, Elisha says to the man take up to thee. As a minister/believer it is your responsibility to take it back again. Dear saints, move in the anointing of God and shake the nation of India for the glory of God. It is your time to play your roll. My prayer is that God will use you in a very special way for the revival. COMING ISSUES: 1.Steps to receive Anointing. 2.Double portion of Anointing. 3.Manifestations of the Anointing. 4.Types of Annointing P.S. If you are interested in receving this FREE magazine please write to us. F.L.M-India publications: Confession brings possession- Book Baptism of the Holy Spirit-Tract (free) Am I Righteous! - Tract (free) Messages by Ford and F.L.M. Team-Audio Cassettes (Tamil & English) F.L.M. - INDIA BOOKS AND CASSETTES LENDING LIBRARY Send your prayer requests, testimonies & letters to: FAITH LANDMARKS MINISTRIES-INDIA P.B.No.3341, M.S.Nagar post Bangalore-560033 S.INDIA TEL/FAX: 5450249 Email address: [email protected] Internet Address: http://westwood.fortunecity.com/hillfiger/63 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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