The Spirit of the Lord

The Spirit of the Lord

Greetings and good morning brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series where we seek to explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years, the heavenly Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them with you. This morning we will ponder our lives as we seek to understand the meaning of the Spirit of the Lord.

And now, sit back and listen to today's message.

"If I ascend up into heaven, thou are there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the seas, even there shall thy hand lead me, and they right hand shall hold me." Palms, Chapter 139, Verses 8, 9, and 10.

"Oh Lord where shall I go from your spirit? If I ascend up to heaven, there you are. If I descend down to hell, you are there too." The spirit of the Lord is everywhere. And ever since the day of Pentecost, not only is the Father everywhere, but the Son, Jesus, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, lives in our hearts. We have two natures: one is material, the other, spiritual. Not only does the human nature manifest itself but the divine life of Jesus also seeks to manifest itself through us. Jesus is seeking to relive his life through us, but some of us will not let him.

Said Jesus, "when I was hungry, you fed me not; when I was afraid, you did not reassure me. When I was lonely, you did not comfort me. When I was thirsty, you gave me no water to drink. When I was hurting, you did not console me. When I was depressed, you did not cheer me. And when I stumbled and fell, you did not pick me up and set me on solid ground. When in my anger, I offended you, you did not forgive me, nor did you show me any mercy.

When I was confused and did not know the way, you hid the light from me. When my mind was in turmoil, you did not calm or ease my fears. When tears flowed from my eyes like a river, and my heart broke into a million pieces, you looked the other way, and refused to love me. When I was weak, you would not let me lean on you until I could become strong. And when I was impatient and immature, you did not show me patience and maturity."

And we said, "we prayed to you night and day, sometimes several times a day. We fasted. We praised your holy name and worshiped you. We even told everybody about you. When, Jesus, did we treat you that way?" Jesus said, "I desire to live in my children but how can I if they are hungry and thirsty? When you ignored them and treated them unkindly, you treated me that way, for I am spirit and felt the abuse."

Said Jesus, "I am kind, meek, tender-hearted; I am compassionate, merciful, and forgiving. In fact, I am the kindness in the kindness that you show. I am the meekness in the meekness that you exhibit. I am the forgiveness in the forgiveness that you bestow. I am the true, the beautiful, and the good. I am the truth in every true meaning. I am the beauty in every beautiful thing, and I am the goodness in every good value."

Said Jesus, "It is my Father's will and my desire to fully manifest my Father to our children, but I operate under a handicap---the free will of my children as well as their imperfections. Thus, I am only able to manifest myself to the degree that my children will permit, further conditioned by their spiritual enlightenment. How I long to bring all my children into this marvelous light, but I must await my hour. It is not the Father's will nor the Son's desire to use any method to accomplish desirable ends. The means are just as important as the ends."

But we said to Jesus, "but we want so many things for ourselves. We have worked hard to achieve our goals. We do not like being inconvenienced after working all day. We have troubles, too. Who is going to help us? If we give away what we have, then we will not have anything left for ourselves. Why don't others ask you to help them instead of us?"

Said Jesus, "You see with the eye of the flesh, and discern not with the eye of the spirit. My little children, has not experience taught you that what you selfishly possess for yourself will be either lost in meaning or in actuality, and that which you seek to share with others will only grow in value. The more you give, the more you receive spiritually. Can you not perceive that the inequalities of life create a tension that can only be resolved by perfecting the whole? When you pull someone else up, you are pulled higher yourself."

Then we said, "but even when we try to do good, feelings of resentment and bitterness often enter our hearts. Sometimes when we reach out to our brothers and sisters, we get our feelings hurt. And some of our brothers and sisters seem oblivious to the truth. They acknowledge truth with their voices, but their hearts are far away."

And then Jesus mercifully replied: "But do not become discouraged my children, I am aware of your difficulties to achieve the righteousness of our Father. I am aware of the delays of time and the handicaps of space. I will help you. Remain true to your purpose, and my mercy will eventually destroy your selfishness and your cravings for material and temporal realities, while our Father's love will shine brightly through you, ever satisfying your spiritual and eternal longings."

This concludes today's message on understanding the meaning of the Spirit of the Lord in our lives. We hope you find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your day. Until next time, this is Dr. James Perry.

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