Power from on High (10/31/23)

The season is near for power to come from on high and endue the Lord’s chosen vessels, mature sons, burning ones, messengers, and disciples. A company of witnesses will receive power in order to give testimony of the Lamb of God and prepare a bride for His coming.

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”” (Acts 1:8 NKJV)

The first-century witnesses could not properly preach Christ without the power of God. Their message of Christ would not have been taken seriously had it not been backed by the power of God.

“For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.” (1 Thessalonians 1:5 KJV)

The loving kindness and mercy of God will once again be extended to all during these final years of the age. In the midst of global shaking and chaos, the Lord will reveal His great mercy by sending His witnesses carrying the power of God. He knows that many more people will choose to follow Him when they encounter the love of God demonstrated in power. He desires for all to know His love and is not willing that any should perish.

Jesus Our Example

Jesus began His ministry with demonstrations of the Holy Spirit and power. He is the hallmark of true ministry and our example. Jesus waited until the fullness of time had come before being sent by the Father. Prior to coming forth in power, Jesus went through a season of wilderness testing. All witnesses must be approved of God by testing before they will be allowed to carry the power of God. Without the wilderness of testing and trials, there will be no power of God from on high.

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1 NKJV)

The Father didn’t tempt Jesus with sin, but He led Jesus to a place in which Satan would be allowed to tempt Jesus with sin. The Father tested Jesus through the temptation of Satan. The wilderness of trials and testing is a place in which the Lord proves His witnesses to see if they will stand up under the pressure of Satan's attacks and temptations or if they will collapse. Those witnesses who pass the tests will be entrusted with power from on high. Those who are defeated by the enemy’s temptations in the secret place will not be trusted as witnesses endued with the power of God.

The Holy Spirit will not lead all believers into this type of wilderness trial because He knows some do not have a great enough internal measure of Christ to pass the tests. He doesn’t want His people destroyed by the enemy if they are not ready. The wilderness testing season must be overcome by the witnesses to prove that they will not collapse under the pressure of the enemy once they are more well-known. The power of God causes vessels to be more well-known in the church, even if the vessel wishes to remain unknown. The Lord doesn’t want to have any more of His well-known leaders collapsing publicly due to sin and scandal.

“Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.” (Luke 4:13-14 NKJV)

After the season of testing ended for Jesus, He emerged in the power of the Spirit. He did not have this same power when He was baptized in the Holy Spirit at the Jordan River. The power was with Him after He passed the trials.

“how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” (Acts 10:38 NKJV)

Jesus began His ministry with miracles and power. News of Jesus spread all over the region because of the power of God clothing Him. Jesus often told people He healed not to say anything about it because He didn’t want it spread around. The witnesses must follow the example of their Master Jesus in order to stay free from pride.

The Importance of Power

When someone encounters the power of God, it is an invitation to seek and know the Lord. A powerful encounter with the Lord has the potential to awaken non-believers and believers. I attribute where I am today on my spiritual journey with the Lord to a power encounter I had with the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands shortly after I had been born again. Many young people from this emerging generation could be pulled into the Kingdom of God after experiencing demonstrations of the Holy Spirit and power. This is an issue of spiritual life and death for many. The witnesses endued with power from on high must come forth.

Power From on High

“Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”” (Luke 24:49 NKJV)

Why did disciples have to wait for power when they already had it? Jesus had already given them power and authority to heal the sick and cast out demons (Luke 9:1-2). The apostles only carried a certain measure of power up to the point where they were endued with it from on high. They could heal the sick with the measure they had, but the Lord would give them a greater measure.

“And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.” (Acts 4:33 NKJV)

“so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.” (Acts 5:15-16 NKJV)

Peter was carrying a similar level of power as Jesus did (Luke 5:15-17). People who had terrible infirmities and tormenting demons were healed when Peter would walk by them due to the enormous level of power emanating from him. Many people would have believed in Jesus after witnessing these demonstrations of power.

Disciples Ministering in Power

“And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.” (Acts 6:8 NKJV)

Power was not just given to the apostles. It was given to humble disciples like Stephen when the witnesses prayed for him. In our day, many disciples who are full of faith and good character will minister in the power of God. The apostles thought Stephen was only being commissioned as a deacon (server) in the church. But the Lord had other plans for how Stephen would serve Him—demonstrations of the Holy Spirit and power while boldly witnessing for Jesus Christ.

Power and Miracles Validate

““Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—” (Acts 2:22 NKJV)

Jesus was authenticated by God through the signs, wonders, and miracles that God did through Him. The Father uses power as a stamp of approval or a seal of validation that He has sent his witnesses. Jesus was obviously perfect and without sin. The Father’s other witnesses will not necessarily have perfect doctrine or be without sin. Nevertheless, these witnesses were and will be attested by God to His church by demonstrations of power.

Note: I have already written extensively on judging the tree (person) by their fruit (character of Christ and fruits of the Holy Spirit). Obviously, the fruit of a witness needs to match outward demonstrations of power for them to be considered “attested by God.” Jesus is our example of the fulfillment of this, while Judas would be our example of a failure at this. Judas ministered signs and wonders, but his inward character was deteriorating daily. Judas was a bad tree that bore bad fruit of the flesh.

Jesus will work with His witnesses in our day, just as He did with His witnesses in the first century. Nowhere in the Bible does the Lord state that He will stop doing miracles and moving in power through His disciples. The power of Jesus will be with His witnesses to validate their message of Jesus Christ the Messiah. Power will be upon these witnesses as they preach Christ and the crucified life. The Lord will confirm His word through manifestations of power.

“And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.” (Mark 16:20 NKJV)

Power Gifts Returning to the Church

“Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.” (I Corinthians 12:27-28 NKJV)

The Lord reveals to us a certain rank and order for leadership, gifts, and service in the church. When His order is ignored or revised by men, His church will be out of order and not come to fullness. If pastors are first in the church, then God’s leadership will be out of order. If service gifts like deacons (helps) and administrators are positioned in a greater role than those who operate in the gift of working of miracles and those with gifts of healings; the church will not function properly.

The American church is currently out of God’s order (in large part). We have placed the ministry of pastor as first in the church, administration as a close second, followed by the ministry of helps (service-type ministries sometimes referred to as deacons). Only the pride of man reorganizes the church to fit its own way of doing things. Men do this because they either don’t believe God’s word or they don’t like it and want their own will. Changing God’s church structure is actually rebellion against God and nothing more than man doing what is right in his own eyes.

The church must repent and allow the power gifts to return to their God-appointed order and rank within the church. The Lord has removed many of these gifts from the church because leadership has not properly valued them and has placed service and administrative gifts before them. Repentance must take place for the full restoration of the working of miracles and gifts of healings. The Lord is raising up new leaders who actually want to obey His blueprint for His church. He will bless the ministries that obey Him with believers who are functioning in these power gifts. This godly church structure will come back into order as apostles bring further restoration to the church in the days ahead.

Power Followed by Wisdom

Jesus ministered in power because people were suffering and needed to be touched by the love of God. The love and compassion of God were demonstrated through power. Secondly, power was used to draw immature people to Him. The same is true today. Immature believers are drawn to demonstrations of power. Paul would begin ministering to those who were immature or more carnal by ministering in power.

“And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,” I Corinthians 2:1-7 NKJV

It is important for the immature to experience the power of God. This is foundational and helps cement their faith in the reality of God. It develops an unshakable faith in the Lord that will be able to withstand the tests and trials. As a believer matures, higher-level wisdom can be revealed. The immature and carnal believer sometimes has difficulty understanding the deeper, weightier things of the Kingdom. The Lord reveals spiritual truths as we are ready for them. If He reveals certain things to us when we are not ready, we will either reject them, waste them, or misuse them.

Also see Hebrews 5:9-14 and Hebrews 6:1-3 for the progression of elementary spiritual truths to deeper spiritual understanding.

The Endless Life

“For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.” (Hebrews 7:14-16 NKJV)

The greatest power of all is Christ’s life in us. This “endless life” continues producing life and fruit within us. This is the life that increases to fullness until we love as Jesus loves. It’s the life that contains joy and kindness. The life that Christ is will flow from us as we yield to Him, and it will overcome the world through us. The life of Christ swallows all of our worries and concerns; it conquers the fear of death through us. We unlock this endless life in us by being the royal priesthood.

The promise of the power of an endless life is for all believers. This is the journey of following Jesus as a disciple until we have been crucified with Christ. Once we are no longer living, Christ lives in us. We must pray and seek the Lord about this promise. He wants to live and manifest His endless life through us. This is the greatest power that can ever be released, and it’s the Lord’s will for all of us to walk in His power of life.

“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (II Peter 1:2-4 NKJV)

Yielding to the Holy Spirit

“Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’ ”” (Luke 5:36-39 NKJV)

The Lord has had me in prayer regarding yielding to the Holy Spirit recently. The Holy Spirit may move in ways that we have not seen Him move before. If the Holy Spirit desires to release power in a fresh way and we have not been made into new wineskins, then we will waste His anointing and power. The season of the release of power is coming, and we must be new wineskins so that we can hold the new wine. What a grievous and terrible thing it would be to waste the fresh wine of the Holy Spirit that He wants to pour out in His vessels. Or to reject the new wine because we are old wineskins and say, “What the Lord did in past revivals was amazing, but I can’t understand why He would do this. The old wine was better. I’m not even sure this is Him.” 

We don’t get to tell the Holy Spirit how He will move. He gets to tell us how He will move. If we try to control Him, He will not move in our midst. If we put limitations on Him, He will not move. We must yield to Him and allow Him to be in charge of His church.

Prayer

“Holy Spirit, I yield to you. Whatever you want to do. I must be part of it. Don’t pass me by. I desire to be a vessel that holds your new wine. Make me into that vessel. Whatever the cost, Holy Spirit. Even if people mock me and speak against me, I must have you at any cost! Keep me under your hand. Bend me to your will. Pour out a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit. Release Your power from on high! Endue Your witnesses with power from on high! Father, as you anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power, would you anoint me with the Holy Spirit and power”?

“And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” (Acts 4:31 NKJV)

-Ty Unruh (October 2023)