Thursdays With Oswald—Consecration Isn’t Just For Ministers

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Oswald Chambers

Consecration Isn’t Just For Pastors 

     Consecration is not the giving over of the calling in life to God, but the separation from all other callings and the giving over of ourselves to God, letting His providence place us where He will—in business, or law, or science; in workshop, in politics…. We are to be there working according to the laws and principles of the Kingdom of God…. 

     “Business is business” is not true for the Christian. Business is a sphere of labor in the world where a man exhibits the laws and principles of the Kingdom, otherwise he is a coward, a deserter, and a traitor to that Kingdom. 

From Christian Disciplines 

Jesus calls all Christians to be salt and light; to season and shine wherever God has placed us. We are consecrated for service to God is we are working by biblical principles, no matter what job we happen to be doing.

17 Quotes From “Smith Wigglesworth On Prayer, Power, And Miracles”

Prayer, Power & MiraclesI highlighted more quotes from Smith Wigglesworth On Prayer, Power, And Miracles than I can possibly share here. But I hope these few quotes will help whet your appetite to buy this book. If you’d like to read my review of this book, please click here.

“God can so fill a man with His Spirit that he can laugh and believe in the face of a thousand difficulties.” 

“Real faith has perfect peace and joy and a shout at any time. It always sees the victory.”

“If you knew the value of it, you would praise God for trial more than for anything. It is the trial that is used to purify you; it is in the fiery furnace of affliction that God gets you in the place where He can use you. The person that has no trials and no difficulties is the person whom God dare not allow satan to touch, because he could not stand temptation; but Jesus will not allow any man to be tempted more than he is able to bear.” 

“God will do great things for us if we are prepared to receive them from Him. We are dull of comprehension because we let the cares of this world blind our eyes, but if we keep open to God, He has a greater plan for us in the future than we have seen or ever have dreamed about in the past. It is God’s delight to fulfill to us impossibilities because of His omnipotence, and when we reach the place where He alone has the right of way in all things, then all mists and misunderstandings will clear away.”

“The Bible is the Word of God: supernatural in origin, eternal in duration, inexpressible in valor, infinite in scope, regenerative in power, infallible in authority, universal in interest, personal in application, inspired in totality. Read it through, write it down, pray it in, work it out, and then pass it on. Truly it is the Word of God. It brings into man the personality of God; it changes the man until he becomes the epistle of God. It transforms his mind, changes his character, takes him on from grace to grace, and gives him an inheritance in the Spirit. God comes in, dwells in, walks in, talks through, and sups with him.”

“Beloved, if you read the Scriptures you will never find anything about the easy time. All the glories come out of hard times. And if you are really reconstructed it will be in a hard time, it won’t be in a singing meeting, but at a time when you think all things are dried up, when you think there is no hope for you, and you have passed everything, then that is the time that God makes the man, when tried by fire, that God purges you, takes the dross away, and brings forth the pure gold. Only melted gold is minted. Only moistened clay receives the mold. Only softened wax receives the seal. Only broken, contrite hearts receive the mark as the Potter turns us on His wheel, shaped and burnt to take and keep the heavenly mold, the stamp of God’s pure gold.”

“We must be taken out of the ordinary. We must be brought into the extraordinary. We must live in a glorious position, over the flesh and the devil, and everything of the world. God has ordained us, clothed us within, and manifested upon us His glory that we may be the sons with promise, of Son-likeness to Him.”

“Oh, this baptism of the Holy Spirit is an inward presence of the personality of God, which lifts, prays, takes hold, lives in, with a tranquility of peace and power that rests and says, ‘It is all right.’ God answers prayer because the Holy Spirit prays and your advocate is Jesus, and the Father the Judge of all. There He is. Is it possible for any prayer to be missed on those lines?”

“God has something better for you than you have ever had in the past. Come out into all the fullness of faith and power and life and victory that He is willing to provide, as you forget the things of the past, and press right on for the prize of His calling in Christ Jesus.” 

“There is nothing impossible with God. All the impossibility is with us when we measure God by the limitations of our unbelief.”

“It is as we feed on the Word and meditate on the message it contains, that the Spirit of God can vitalize that which we have received, and bring forth through us the word of knowledge that will be as full of power and life as when He, the Spirit of God, moved upon holy men of old and gave them these inspired Scriptures.”

“The trouble is that we do not have the power of God in a full manifestation because of our finite thoughts, but as we go on and let God have His way, there is no limit to what our limitless God will do in response to a limitless faith. But you will never get anywhere except you are in constant pursuit of all the power of God.”

“Jesus said, ‘Be not afraid, only believe’ (Mark 5:36). He speaks the word just in time! Jesus is never behind time. When the tumult is the worst, the pain the most severe, the cancer gripping the body, then the word comes, ‘Only believe.’ When everything seems as though it will fail, and is practically hopeless, the Word of God comes to us, ‘Only believe.’”

“Faith is a divine act, faith is God in the soul. God operates by His Son, and transforms the natural into the supernatural. Faith is active, never dormant; faith lays hold, faith is the hand of God, faith is the power of God, faith never fears, faith lives amid the greatest conflict, faith is always active, faith moves even things that cannot be moved. God fills us with His divine power, and sin is dethroned.”

“There is nothing small about our God, and when we understand God we will find out that there ought not to be anything small about us. We must have an enlargement of our conception of God, then we will know that we have come to a place where all things are possible, for our God is an omnipotent God for impossible positions.”

“We have a big God. We have a wonderful Jesus. We have a glorious Comforter. God’s canopy is over you and will cover you at all times, preserving you from evil. Under His wings shalt thou trust. The Word of God is living and powerful and in its treasures you will find eternal life. If you dare trust this wonderful Lord, the Lord of life, you will find in Him everything you need.”

“There are evil powers, but Jesus is greater than all evil powers. There are tremendous diseases, but Jesus is healer. There is no case too hard for Him. The Lion of Judah shall break every chain. He came to relieve the oppressed and to set the captive free. He came to bring redemption, to make us as perfect as man was before the fall.”

Smith Wigglesworth On Prayer, Power, And Miracles (book review)

Prayer, Power & MiraclesWhenever I need a booster shot of faith, or a challenge to believe God for even greater things, or just a unabashed reminder of the power of the Scriptures, I pick up a book by Smith Wigglesworth. By the time I got done reading Smith Wigglesworth On Prayer, Power, And Miracles compiled by Roberts Liardon I was totally fired up!

This book is a collection of sermons delivered by Wigglesworth and articles he authored for various Pentecostal publications. Every one of the chapters is simply saturated in Scripture and the anointing of the Holy Spirit! Each of the articles made we want to dig into the Bible more, believe God for more, and crave the empowerment of the Spirit more!

If you are tired of humdrum church-as-usual, or if you are ready for your faith to be stretched like it’s never been stretched before, pick up a copy of this book and strap yourself in. I promise that you will not think about the things of God the same after these messages have worked their way into your heart.

Myth Buster

Dick BrogdenGuest Blogger: Dick Brogden

Currently there is an inordinate emphasis on size and speed when it comes to the development of the church. Church history soberly shows that orthodoxy tends not to spread as swiftly as heresy and that bad teaching outpaces good. It is the slow, steady repeated truth of God that builds the enduring church. The largest church at the end of the first century was found in Rome, thought by most scholars to be around two hundred members. The churches in Ephesus, Corinth, Philippi, Colosse, and Thessalonica (among others) were most probably between fifteen and fifty. The record of Acts takes place over about fifty years. Biblical precedent indicates that it takes about a generation to get a few churches to what we now consider modest size. One myth is that the church has to grow quickly; another that a strong church is a big church. The best churches tend to grow slowly and steadily, and the normal first century church comprised less than fifty people.

Disciples, too, are forged over time. If a church is but a collection of disciples, then it makes sense that strong churches require time to become solid. Another common myth today in mission is that all new disciples need is the Bible and the Holy Spirit. As appealing as this sounds, it has never been true in history, and if we are honest, it has not been true for any of us experientially. Consider how many books, sermons, mentors, friends, and external inputs help shape and form our spirituality over time. None of us grew to where we are without multiple sources of input over disparate seasons, all the input submitted to the authority of Holy Spirit and the Word. Biblically there always remains the need for an outside catalyst to help correct our biases and heresies. A group of people studying the Scriptures can just as easily end up pooling ignorance as illumining one another. Acts 15 is a classic example of ongoing external input necessary for the formation of strong disciples and churches. The negative example of external input (requiring circumcision) does not negate the massive, ongoing positive external input.

Paul and Barnabas report the wonderful turning of the Gentiles to Jesus. They also report the negative external pressure. James and the counsel respond by correcting the error and reinforcing what is necessary. In Acts 15:20, James delineates what they should not do–former religious forms and rituals. Paul reminds the council that coming to Jesus demands conversion (v. 3) and James cites Peter that the Gentiles must come out of false religion (v. 14). In Acts 15:32, Judas and Silas “exhort and strengthen the brethren with many words.” In verse 35, Paul and Barnabas teach and preach to the Gentiles and in verse 36, Paul and Barnabas commit to revisit their converts to ensure they are walking correctly. Disciples and churches are forged over time. Let us continue to believe that God will do great things and bring millions into His church. Let us continue to understand that it is slow, steady, life-on-life work to make disciples and build churches.

Thursdays With Oswald—Questions

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Oswald Chambers

Questions

A series of questions Oswald Chambers asked his audience:

  • Can God do what He likes in your life? 
  • Can He help Himself liberally to you? 
  • Can He take you up and put you down? 
  • Can He introduce His schemes through you, and never tell you the reason why? 
  • Can He make you a spectacle to men and angels, as He did Job, without giving you any explanation? 
  • Can He make you a wonder to yourself and to others, while He gives you the implicit child-like understanding that somehow or other things are working out all right? 
  • Can it be said of us that Jesus so loved us that He stayed where He was because He knew we had a capacity to stand a bigger revelation? 
  • Are we making it easy for the Holy Spirit to work out God’s will in us, or are we continually putting Him on one side by the empty requests of our natural hearts, Christians though we be?”

From If Ye Shall Ask

Oswald Chambers was a big proponent of allowing the Holy Spirit to search and examine those who call themselves Christians. He believed the truthfulness of the statement, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”

My brother, my sister, can you allow God’s Spirit to test you with these types of questions? Are you willing to pray, as David did, “Search me, O God”? If you and I don’t allow the Holy Spirit to search us, how will we know if we are truly in the faith?

Knocking At Heaven’s Door & If Ye Shall Ask (book reviews)

If Ye Shall AskOswald Chambers challenges me like few authors do. He so plainly states how Scripture should be applied to my daily life that it often makes me squirm. In these two books about prayer: If Ye Shall Ask and Knocking At Heaven’s Door my prayer life is challenged.

In the preface to the first edition of If Ye Shall Ask in 1937, Oswald Chambers’ friend John Skidmore said that Chambers addressed “most of our difficulties concerning prayer.” And truly, Chambers makes it clear that most of our understandings about prayer are really misunderstandings which have been shaped by culture. So Chambers makes a strong case that we get back to exactly what Jesus said about prayer.

Chambers wrote, “Jesus Christ does not make monks and nuns, He makes men and women fit for the world as it is (see John 17:5).” Chambers makes sure that all of our prayer life is grounded on Scripture, not on what others have told us about prayer, to prepare us to live out God’s plan for our lives everyday.

Then in Knocking At Heaven’s Door we get a chance to see Oswald Chambers practice what he preaches. This book is a collection of prayers from his personal journals, which his wife compiled. Reading Chambers’ prayers we see that he believed and prayed just like he taught. A true treasure!

If you want to grow in your prayer life, these books will launch your forward.

Blessed Insurance

ImmersedI’ve been bailed out by an insurance company many times. Homeowner’s insurance for the damage caused by a falling tree, medical insurance for surgery, auto insurance for car wrecks.

But here’s the thing about insurance: It’s only helpful after you’ve had a problem.

  • Workman’s comp is good after you’ve been injured
  • Auto insurance is good after you’ve smashed your car
  • Health insurance is good after you’re sick
  • Life insurance is good after you’re dead

Sadly, many people treat God like an insurance policy. They try to handle their lives themselves, and then after they’re beat-up, tossed around, and kicked to the curb they pray that God’s insurance will bail them out. It’s like they’ve changed the words of the old hymn to, “Blessed insurance, Jesus is mine!”

God desires for us to have a blessed assurance! He wants us to know His love and involvement in our lives every single day. Look at the assurance in these verses—

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him. (1 John 5:13-15)

If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:7)

The Bible isn’t just a book to be read, it’s a book to be prayed. Get His Word in you, and stay immersed in His Word, and watch how your prayers change. You don’t have to wait for prayer to be your insurance policy, but you can live every day in a blessed assurance that God is for you.

Read the Bible, pray the Bible, and watch God do amazing things!

I will be continuing our series on prayer—If You Will Ask—this Sunday at 10:30am. Please join me!

God Answers Prayer

Oswald ChambersHere are the quotes I used this morning in my message on prayer.

“Our Lord in His teaching regarding prayer never once referred to unanswered prayer; He said God always answers prayer.” —Oswald Chambers

“Trust is not a belief that God can bless, that He will bless, but that He does bless, here and now. Trust always operates in the present tense. Hope looks toward the future. Trust looks to the present. Hope expects. Trust possesses. Trust receives what prayer acquires.” —E.M. Bounds

Book Reviews From 2013

BookshelfHere are the books I read and reviewed in 2013. Click a title to read the review…

10 People Every Christian Should Know

A Harmony Of The Gospels

Alive To Wonder

All In

Alone

Altar Ego

Andrew Murray Daily Reader

Dear Abba

Decision Points

Did The Resurrection Happen … Really?

Draw The Circle

Fight

Firsthand

Francis

God’s Favorite Place On Earth

God’s Workmanship

Habitudes

He Shall Glorify Me

I Never Thought I’d See The Day

If Thou Wilt Be Perfect

If Ye Shall Ask

It Is Finished

Jesus Is _____.

Jesus: A Theography

Knocking At God’s Door

Love To The Uttermost

One Year Book Of Personal Prayer

Outliers

Plastic Donuts

Pouring Holy Water On Strange Fire

Promotion

Raising Your Child To Love God

Seven Men

Smith Wigglesworth On Healing

Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Learn

Stopping Words That Hurt

The 13th Resolution

The Baptism With The Holy Spirit

The Bare Facts

The Five Levels Of Leadership

The Highest Good

The Hobbit

The Man Who Knew Too Much

The Purpose Of Christmas

The Ragamuffin Gospel

The Reagan Diaries

The Secrets Of Intercessory Prayer

Things We Couldn’t Say

Understanding Sexting

Unfinished

Unstoppable

Visioneering

Who Do You Think You Are?

You Don’t Need A Title To Be A Leader

For my book reviews of 2011 click here, and for 2012’s list click here.

The Morning Star

John 3-17This is part three of a 3-part series called The Star Of CHRISTmas. I was going to deliver this message at Calvary Assembly of God yesterday morning, but due to the terrible weather, we had to cancel our services. I hope this message will be a blessing to you. Please leave me some feedback in the comments section below.

Check out the other ways Jesus shined brightly at His Advent in our series The Star Of CHRISTmas.

Merry Christmas!