God calls us all to walk in the Spirit so we can accomplish his will. We might know WHAT God’s will is, but we also need to know HOW to do it. Warfare is accomplished effectively by those who know HOW to fight. When we specifically do what God calls us to do, then miracles will happen.
The disciples in the Upper Room knew WHAT to do. They had to share the gospel, plant churches, and spread the kingdom of God. But they lacked knowledge about HOW to do this, and they lacked power. So they waited. Sometimes we need to wait, even if we know what God’s will is.
David knew what to do – kill Goliath. But he also knew how to do it – with a slingshot. The supernatural knowledge of HOW gave him the victory.
Gideon knew what to do – defeat the Midianites. But he also knew how to do it – with 300 men, torches, and clay pots. His specific obedience to the unique revelation of God gave him the victory.
Joshua knew what to do – defeat Jericho. But the Holy Spirit also revealed how to do it – with trumpets and marches around the city. Obedience to these instructions brought the walls of Jericho crashing down.
David knew he had to defeat the Philistines. But God told him how to do it – he had to wait for the rustling in the tops of the mulberry trees (2 Samuel 5:17-25). When he waited for this sound, God went before him and gave him the victory. Sometimes we need to wait for the “rustling in the mulberry trees” in our circumstances before we can move forward and see God’s will happen.
Victory in all of these battles was God’s will, but victory only came by specific obedience to the revealed words of God.
We need revelation of the HOW in order to accomplish God’s will.
This is key to walking in the Spirit.
The Example of Jesus
Jesus knew it was his Father’s will to heal. Jesus healed everyone who came to him on earth asking for healing. But Jesus knew more than this – he also knew HOW his Father wanted him to heal each person.
The HOW seemed different each time.
To heal one man, Jesus spat on the ground, made clay with the spit and dirt, rubbed the clay on a man, and then told him to wash in a pool of water. After this the man was healed (John 9:6-7).
Another time, Jesus poked his fingers into a man’s ears, spat, and then touched his tongue (Mark 7:33). After this the man was healed.
Another time Jesus spat on a man’s eyes (Mark 8:23).
Other times Jesus spoke or laid his hands on people to give them healing.
Each time, Jesus not only knew what his Father wanted to do (which was to heal the sick), but he knew how to do it. He obeyed his Father specifically each time, following exact instructions. This is what unleashed miraculous power.
Knowing what to do is very important, but knowing how to do it is just as important.
Failures
The Bible is full of examples of people who knew what to do, but they don’t know how to do it. Therefore they faced failure or problems.
Cain knew he had to sacrifice to God, but he didn’t know how. Without the knowledge of HOW, his offering was rejected.
Abraham and Sarah knew they needed a son, but they didn’t know how to get that son because they were so old. So they operated in the flesh and birthed Ishmael who later created problems.
The sons of Sceva knew God wanted to cast out demons, but they didn’t know how to do it. Therefore they were defeated by the demons and put to shame.
Vision shows the destination, but walking in the Spirit gets us to the destination.
Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers. The weapons of our warfare are mighty through God to demolish spiritual strongholds. Spiritual weapons operate by obedience to specific words from God.
Spiritual warfare requires vehemence, zeal, and force. It also requires precision. We are to fight not as those who beat the air, but we need to hit the mark. We must speak the words and do the works that God wants us to do. When we are specifically led by the Holy Spirit we will see breakthrough.
God has much that he wants to accomplish through our individual lives and through the church. God wants his bride to be prepared for his coming. This will happen as we not only see the great goals God has before us, but as we receive revelation from him about how to accomplish these goals. God will show us the way forward as we lean on his Spirit to guide us. Then we will walk in the Spirit and reach the destination.
Lincoln House Churches 