Difficient to Efficient

We cannot minimize what happens to a lost person who is born again in the Spirit. And we should never make it a usual, "whatever" type of thing in our thinking, because that is a life that was bound for eternal damnation that is now saved from it and ushered into an abundance of living! To some, those may seem like just a bunch of "church" words that all people who call themselves inherited to say. If you have made them empty words that have no depth in them, it is time to step back and allow this life-changing experience to become real again to you.

Jesus set the stage for what was happening when a person is born again when speaking to one of the religious leaders, whose name was Nicodemus. In John 3 the dialogue goes like this. John 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; ² this man came to Jesus at night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” ³ Jesus responded and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” The response of Nicodemus mirrors the response of many today, who say, "What do you mean by born again?" So Jesus explained it clearly to anyone, realizing that it is a spiritual thing going on.

John 3: ⁶ That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which has been born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so is everyone who has been born of the Spirit.”

When you are born again in the Spirit, you become a mystic, or someone who lives their life according to a spiritual power and presence. A. W. Tozer was a mystic, and his witness continues to influence Christians to allow the Holy Spirit to guide us in our faith walk and draw us closer to God in our thinking, which translates into a more Godly lifestyle. Here is a commentary on Tozer's life as a mystic. A.W. Tozer viewed mysticism positively, identifying as an "evangelical mystic" who valued the intense, intimate fellowship with God found in historical figures like Bernard of Clairvaux and Julian of Norwich. While he was deeply influenced by Catholic mystics and their emphasis on the "presence" of God, his theology remained grounded in scripture, which he believed provided the ultimate authority and prevented any straying into unbiblical or "occult" practices. He saw this mystical experience as a profound, biblically supported spiritual reality to be pursued, but distinguished it from unsound, sensationalist, or self-deceptive approaches to faith. 

Without the Spirit of God, we are deficient! Deficient (def) - lacking something essential or inadequate in quality or amount. It is not like we don't have the Holy Spirit, but we can unknowingly bury the work of the Holy Spirit under the lack of biblical understanding about the Holy Spirit. We HAVE this power source and receive the Holy Spirit at the point of conversion, but that seed is immediately attacked by our enemy to keep us from growing in the Word and in our relationship with Jesus. Without the Holy Spirit realized in our lives and leading us, we can miss many of the blessings of growth in our faith walk, basically. because of a lack of understanding. I get it. You may be thinking oooo Holy Spirit. Boy, you have gone off the deep end, David. To which, I reply, "I like the deep end. Because that is where I find the answers to life from a loving and caring God."

God took care of my deficiency through Jesus, and now offers me a new way of living and thinking. Paul wrote these familiar words to the church in Ephesus in Ephesians 2: ⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith; and ^[l]this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰ For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. If a new convert is not led to an understanding of the power of the Holy Spirit, they may drift into a weak and lifeless faith that resembles being lost instead of being saved.

John 16:¹³ But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify Me, for He will take from Mine and will disclose it to you.

Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in your walk, and ask the Holy Spirit to show you what to pray, how to live, what God's Word means, and how to grow in your faith walk, and He will do it. Our battle in life is spiritual, so get the power you need to fight the battle from Jesus, and that power is found in the Holy Spirit. You will go from deficient to efficient immediately, and it will be seen in obvious evidence in your life. 2 Corinthians 5: ¹⁷ Therefore,

if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new ^[g]creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

The Pilgrimage Continues,

David Warren