The presence of God Part 2 | Mark Jones

The Presence of God Part 2 Mark Jones

This message was preached by Mark Jones at the Regions Beyond "Gather 2014" Leaders retreat at Igatpuri. This is part 2 of a two part series. to listen or download the audio mp3 file please click here.

The presence of God does not belong in the logic of our minds. How many times have you not done something for God because it did not make sense?

Are you just living in the logical or in the supernatural? I

THE PRESENCE OF GOD- 2

In psalm 27 David says, “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord, all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”

We desire to reach the nations, change situations, etc. yet we will say, one thing we desire. When we do this, everything is possible. So before anything else, we need to decide (before method or strategy) that this one thing is important.

Where God dwells there is total and absolute authority- that God’s glory will fill the earth as the waters cover the sea as we dwell in his presence. But this is for those who know how to dwell in his presence all the time.

Q. How do we do this?

1. To know how to dwell in the presence of God, we must understand his heart for the church. God wanted a people who would be a light to the nations. To be his servant and carrier to the nations. God has made a royal priesthood.

It’s too small a thing to be here just for the people of God. The question to ask is – is it the dwelling place of God?

In Genesis 28, Jacob was fleeing and encountered God like never before. Heaven opened and there was a ladder reaching down and angels ascending and descending the ladder. God spoke to him. He could never forget this. He said this is the house of God. The gateway to heaven.

We are not just a group of people trying to get to heaven. We are the gateway of heaven that is on earth. Heaven is not closed today because of Jesus. So anyone who believes in Jesus becomes this gateway.

Heaven’s resources are available today. It’s a reality now. God tore open the heaven. All authority given to Jesus who said that we will do greater things than him.

We’ve been chosen by God to be a gateway to heaven through the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus for those who are called by the name of Jesus- this power is made available to them. We can have a foretaste of heaven now.

We need to be a people who understand how glorious we are. We are an active gate. The purposes of God to be made known- not by your own might but by the power of Jesus.

We can heal in Jesus name because God wants to display what happens in the heavenly realms here on earth. So we can come with confidence, authority, in the power of the Holy Spirit to see this earthly world transformed. It’s not about you, it’s about Him. He dwells in our presence with a purpose. You might think, “Who are we to do these things?” But the question to ask is, “Who is He?” We need to look at him and be lifted up as a people.  

2. Renewal of the mind- it’s not about dealing with bad habits. It’s about God wanting us to have everything in our minds to start understanding the things of God. God wants your mind to be on his wavelength- to live in and understand who God is. But only what is beyond our understanding has the capacity to renew our mind.

The presence of God does not belong in the logic of our minds. How many times have you not done something for God because it did not make sense?

You can say- to die is gain only when your mind is renewed. We have made God very small in our eyes and in so doing, have limited ourselves. We are who we are because of the power of Jesus.

God is greater than we can imagine. The world would be of no significance to God- a drop of water, a speck of dust. It’s true. We must have our minds transformed so we can see who he really is.

We should see miracles on a daily basis. This is a serious issue. Every miracle is an advance of the kingdom of God. God wants to advance his kingdom by the supernatural. In Col 3 it says, set your minds on thing above. It’s quite a thing to stretch your mind beyond the normal. But when we mix it with the presence of God, it stretches our understanding.

We only use 40% of our brain at a given time. Therefore 60% is God’s!! Are you just living in the logical or in the supernatural? It should be an everyday occurrence. This world will be reached by people who understand the presence of God.

3. We need to renew our faith and understand what faith is and what it is not. Faith must have its anchor in what is not seen. If you don’t you will make God small in your own eyes. We can base our faith on outcomes. Depending upon your experience, you may or may not believe. That is not faith. Faith finds its anchor in the character of God and in eternity. Faith has to go beyond your ability to believe and achieve something or discipling one another will become an issue of intellect and understanding.

If you want to dwell in the presence of God stop trying to believe something to achieve something and cry out for the gift of faith- faith that is anchored in the glory of God.

People get worn out because they do things out of duty and not a moment of faith.

Application:

If we want to understand how and dwell in the presence of God we need to be really devoted to him- to the point of giving everything to him.

He conceals truth from those who do not have a hunger for it. Devotion to God is about pursuing him and his ways. Pursuit creates passion.

Jesus told a parable of a man who found a field with treasure. That is passion and hunger. God wants us to be those who search for him.

God conceals himself at times, but only to the hungry. The hungry will get a revelation of God. God does not hide things from us but conceals it.