The Perfection of Power

One of the challenges that the church has had over the last several decades is the weakness of our witness regarding a demonstration of Spiritual Power. The church may have a lot of organization, the church may have structure, the church has good preaching and the church may even have a lot of diverse and in many cases effective ministries. But by and large, one of the things that the mainstream church does not have is Power. This is a problem, because one of the reasons that Jesus died was for His people to walk in power (Acts 1). The Power of the Holy Ghost is available to the church. If you are a born-again believer in Christ in whom the Holy Spirit of God resides and dwells, then you can walk and operate in the Supernatural Power of God. We need to make sure that people understand that Divine Power is not restricted to the offices of the Apostle and the Prophet. Yes, the function of these offices are supposed to walk in and demonstrate the Supernatural Anointing of Christ. But just for the record, you don't have to be an apostle to heal the sick. You don't have to be a prophet to perform miracles. This is why Jesus said, "these signs shall follow them that believe" (Mark 16). However, regardless of your office, and no matter how spiritual you may be, you will not be able to access, let alone sustain, Supernatural Power unless you experience The Perfection of Power.

One of the things that I'm learning is that if you're serious about being used as a vessel of God for the Kingdom Movement and walk in Supernatural Power, there's a literal pruning and purging process that you must endure. You can't just say your prayers and read your Bible and think that is the prescription for walking in the Supernatural. It doesn't work like that. God has to allow you to go through a period of Affliction and Suffering in order to prepare you for the weight you will have to carry in being a vessel of God's Kingdom Power. This is one of the reasons why a lot of Christians, including ministers, do not qualify to be anointed and activated with the Divine Power of God; they don't want to endure the suffering required to qualify. With all due respect, if spiritually speaking you are a "spiritual wimp", meaning you don't like to go through any pain and sacrifice for God, then don't expect to be used by God in the demonstration of the Supernatural. Mind you, it doesn't mean you won't be used, but God won't be able to use you as a carrier of His Glory. Sacrifice and Suffering is a prerequisite for walking in manifestation of the Kingdom Power of God.

This is what Paul was talking about in 2Corinthians 12 when he was explaining about his "thorn in the flesh". When he asked God three times to take it away, the Lord's response was, "My Grace is sufficient for thee, for My Power is made perfect in weakness" (2Corinthians 12, New International Version). This is the key to the Perfection of Power. God uses our weaknesses to magnify and perfect His Power and Glory within us. Not the weaknesses of our sins, not the flaws of our personality, but the weakness that is incurred when we're challenged to endure suffering for His Name's sake. This is why Paul goes on to say, "therefore I take pleasure in infirmities...in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake". Who do you know that takes "pleasure" in feeling pain? Who do you know that gets happy when they're stressed out and pressed upon because of the ministry? How many folks do you know that get a kick out of being talked about and persecuted when they've done absolutely nothing wrong? This my brothers and sisters is the key to the Perfection of Power. If you want the Divine Power of God resting upon your life and operating in your life, you're going to have to allow the Holy Spirit to transform your thinking, and instead of running from the pain and the stress of the Cross, learn to embrace it. For without it we won't receive The Perfection of Power.