If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!

Transcription

1 August 2013 Dear Friend, On my way back from a ministry trip to Brazil one year, I sat next to two women on the airplane who were returning from Africa. They had been on a pilgrimage to hear the Dalai Lama speak as part of their quest for truth. During our conversation, I told them what I had been doing in Brazil and about the miracles the Lord had done there, and they got real quiet. Later on, the women told me how they had already made their way through dead Christianity, but it was obvious to me that they had never known or experienced the true life that is in Christ. Instead, they had devoted their lives to Buddhism and believed that, through reincarnation, they could eventually purify themselves from the consciousness of sin. They also believed that after enough lifetimes of suffering and human deprivation or self-denial, they would be found worthy and granted an audience with God. Isn t that just like the devil? First of all, he masterminds the spiritual death of the human race, and then, once mankind has a sin nature that can do nothing but sin, he tells them they cannot live that way they must purify themselves through one of his forms of religion that will only doom them to hell. It takes a devious mind like the devil s to mastermind something as diabolical and twisted as a person living his whole life trying to purify himself from the consciousness of sin only to end up deceived and lost anyway. Satan has been extremely successful at deceiving people with alternate forms of religion that do not rely on the salvation of Christ and the rebirth of the human spirit. He has deceived millions of people with religious practices that only leave them in their original state of spiritual death by convincing them that the darkness that is in them is light. This type of deception is what Jesus was talking about in Matthew 6:23: If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! You see, there are only two kinds of people in the world: Those who are born again and those who are not. Therefore, there is really only one thing that separates believers from the rest of the world, and that is the new nature. No matter how many different kinds of religion try to indoctrinate and convince people to save themselves, no teaching apart from the truth of Christ will ever bring salvation, because man cannot give himself a new nature. The pivotal point of the human race is the Cross, where Jesus made it possible to step out of darkness, which is spiritual death, and into light, which is the life that is in Christ, just as Colossians 1:13 says: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son. When Paul talks about darkness in this verse, he is literally talking about the condition of a human spirit that is totally void of God, existing in a state of spiritual

2 death outside of God s nature. There is no limit to what darkness sin will do when it is reigning through the heart of a spiritually dead man. Just take Adolf Hitler as an example! The thought that surprises me the most is that if one man had the capacity to become Hitler, then before we were born again, we all had that capacity. Someone might say, Oh, no, not me. I could never be like him! On the contrary, it just depends on how your unregenerated spirit was trained before you were born again. Let s imagine you were born into a tribe of headhunters, and to become an honored warrior and celebrated by your peers, you had to take the head of one of your enemies. Well, if no one ever taught you differently or if you never desired a different path in life, then you would most likely try to take your enemy s head. The depths of sin a person can fall to being led by the sin nature is limitless. Because of that, it is no harder for Satan to get unsaved people to sin than it is to get a swarm of piranhas to eat a cow after it has been thrown into the Amazon River. No matter how hard a person tries to change his sin nature, outside of being born again, that nature is not going to change. Hard work and discipline can affect outward behavior and actions, but only salvation found in Jesus Christ can change the inner man and bring spiritual life. Therefore, a person can embrace every new form of religion and spend every night in deep meditation trying to cleanse his inner self, but to no avail. The sin nature is as much a part of an unregenerated spirit as the new nature is a part of a spirit that has been born again. Where Satan finds the power to get a new generation of men and women to follow him into wars, genocide, murders, rapes, and so on is by tapping into the depths of human spirits that are void of God. That is because the sin nature is the part of a person that has the capacity to do these things. Likewise, the new nature is the part of a person that has the capacity to do the works of God. John G. Lake, a missionary and minister in the early twentieth century, knew that the divine flow of God s Presence and His healing power could only flourish through a person whose spirit was in fellowship with God. John wrote these words: Faith is a product of your spirit, not your intellect. Your intellect does not produce faith. Your knowledge may give you ground for faith, but faith is a product of your spirit. Joy is something in your spirit. Happiness is something connected with your surroundings. You are happy because of your surroundings. You are joyful because of your right relation with your Father. Now faith, love, joy, hope all spring from your spirit being, the hidden man of the heart. All are a product of your spiritual life. The reason people do not have rich, beautiful faith is because their spirit is denied the privilege of communion and fellowship with the Father. You don t read your Bible; you don t pour over it; you don t live in it; you don t spend time in fellowship with the Father. Consequently, your spirit is depleted and weakened. Faith springs out of it, and the faith that grows out of it is a sickly plant. (Quoted from John G. Lake; The -2-

3 Complete Collection of His Life Teachings by Roberts Liardon Ministries, Albury Publishing.) John G. Lake was responsible for training 1,400 ministries, establishing 600 churches, and getting almost one million people saved in Africa over a period of eight years. No one could count the total number of healings that took place. However, in five years in Spokane, Washington, close to 100,000 people were healed, causing Spokane to become the most disease-free city in America by the year John knew what he was talking about when he said our spirit is the part of us that must be developed through our fellowship with God. Our spirit is not like our body. If we quit feeding our body, it will eventually die. But if we quit feeding our spirit, it will continue to exist. It does not need sustenance to survive. It is eternal and self-existing. When you do not feed your spirit, it simply stops developing, making it possible for you to remain in the same place spiritually for the rest of your life. Before I was born again, I inherited a sin nature from the first man Adam. I did not inherit Adam s individual human spirit, but I did inherit the spiritual death that was in his spirit. And after I was born again, I did not inherit Jesus individual human spirit, but I did inherit the spiritual life the nature of God that was in His spirit. In the same way that my old nature used to move on my emotions and reasonings to lead me to sin, my new nature now moves on my emotions and reasonings to lead me to do righteous works. This is what Paul meant in Romans 5:17 when he said, For if by one man s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ. Because our new nature is the only part of us that can understand spiritual things, it is the only part of us that the Holy Spirit co-labors with. That is why the Holy Spirit baptized our spirit, bypassing our world-trained mind and emotions. And when He wants to teach us something, it is also our new nature that He communicates with. I believe that what has taken me over forty years of ministry to learn can be imparted in a much shorter time because of the spiritual keys the Holy Spirit has taught us. As you spend time in fellowship with God developing the new nature within you through keys like praying in tongues, worship, and confession of the Word love, joy, peace, and faith will begin to dominate your life, filling it with God s power and glory. I want you to experience the best this life has to offer, and that only comes through a born-again spirit in fellowship with God. May you experience the closeness and richness of fellowship with your Heavenly Father like never before. I know your life will never be the same! Your co-laborer, Dave Roberson

4 The Family Prayer Center Present-Day Speaking PT130623A Jun 23, 2013 I Do Not Discredit You Because of Your Struggles Editor s Note: The following was spoken after an exhortation on a surrendered life and allowing God to equip you for His plans and purposes. I choose you for a different reason than man chooses you. So quit discrediting yourself when the very thing that I need, you already have. The thing that is most important for promotion in My Kingdom, you have. So do not discredit yourself because of your struggles. Men may discredit you because of your struggles, but I do not discredit you because of your struggles. PT130623B Jun 23, 2013 God s Pleasure Tongues and Interpretation in a Service He expressed His pleasure in being able to interact because of the supernatural languages with the Body that s being taught and employing His thoughts and His sayings, that He loves this, because to Him, it s an active teaching and it is a pleasure to Him. PT130623C Jun 23, 2013 Gospel Entrepreneurs Who Will Be Free When I was over there, the prophecy came that in these last times, there is going to be the kind of entrepreneur that would really, I mean, just like revivals and hospitals being emptied and things like that, this was such a powerful anointing that the money wouldn t make it wouldn t make these entrepreneurs. It wouldn t make slaves out of them. They would make it [their servant]. In other words, the millions and billions and billions they will dump in as this thing burns wild like a forest fire and money will not destroy them. They will destroy the devil s work with it. These guys are going to be free FREE! And if we think that is an easy task, think again. Money can give you power to be just about anything that you want. You can even buy countries with it, just about. But to have a person have all of that at his disposal and be free from it to put it in the Gospel is what s going to happen [all] around before He comes back. And I saw this beginning to come forward and I got so happy, and He was talking about that just then in the tongues that some people are thinking, Well, why don t we have revival now? I ll tell you what, I thought we should have had it the first week we announced we were believing for it. And you can t say that we prayed less than any other church or anything the people being trained prayed less or anything but I do know this, as time goes on, those entrepreneurs: Unmeasurable amounts of money mammon unmeasureable amounts will come on the scene because, suddenly, the revival fires will spread like a forest fire and go from one place to the other. And the harvest will be much, much shorter than what you would have thought a revival would take to go around the world, because everything was in place. This burned crazy, wild like forest

5 fires and caught a flame, and the whole world was affected by what God was doing, which He was able to turn that all loose in preparation for His return which isn t too far from now. So these guys [Gospel Entrepreneurs] are going to precede that when all of a sudden it breaks out. When money is worth something, then they are going to get to run ahead with the billions and billions, and finances will be no problem. And those entrepreneurs, they are going to stand there and get the reward [along] with the mouth they financed. PT130630A Jun 30, 2013 The Devil Does Not Govern Your Walk Editor s Note: The following was before a ministry prayer line for those in a battle in their emotions. The devil he will tempt, and in the temptation, he will attempt to trade off some of the freedom that you have by My grace for some [of his] bondage, but you don t have to listen to him. He does not have authority over you. Neither does he govern your walk. When you feel that come aboard in your emotions, then stop and address it as a spirit. Tell it to get out. He can t stay. PT130630B Jun 30, 2013 Lean on Me I Am Here for You Editor s Note: The following was before prayer for healing. Rest in Me. Lean on Me. You will see I am here for you, and I delight in the fellowship one on one, Me and you. This kind of fellowship is not hard for Me. Just lift your face and call on Me. I will be there. I will be there. I desire your fellowship even more than you desire Mine. This is why you are of Me in the beginning. PT Jul 7, 2013 My Fellowship With You in Truth Is a Great Delight My fellowship with you is a great delight when you come to Me walking in My truth and I fellowship with you around that truth, for I am able to do many things that I desire to do, and you will receive many things you desire to receive. When I fellowship with you and it fills you with joy, I rejoice with you, says the Lord. -2-

6 PT130710A Jul 10, 2013 Learn How to Press Through Those Feelings My children, if you will learn if you will learn how to press through those feelings, past that flesh, if you will learn how to raise up your hands and worship Me when all hell is lined up against you when you will learn to do that, you can walk in everything, everything that I have already accomplished for you. But it takes you deciding. You have to decide. You have to choose Me. You have to raise up your hands. You have to speak out the words of worship, because in that, in that you will see the manifestation of exactly what you are believing Me for. PT130710B Jul 10, 2013 I Will Pour Out on You Editor s Note: The following was after an invitation to receive healing from pain. You are seeing things, but there are yet things to be seen. And you who stayed with Me and have walked this out in the Spirit with Me, you will see, when a certain time comes, how I will pour out. I will pour out on you. When a person breathes in deeply that sigh of relief of a job well done, you will see: You take part in this plan that I have for this place that, when it is all over, you will be so satisfied, so full. You will feel such a peace and a strength that you will be glad that you found a way to follow the instructions of the Holy Spirit to everything He has given you to do. PT130710C Jul 10, 2013 Be Strong: Many Things Are Going to Come For I have not taught you all these years edified, build you up to have you sitting and doing the same thing until the day you die. I have prepared you for a place that you would be edified in Me and could do the things I called you to do no matter what they were, where they were, and what they are doing. So be strong, because many, many things are going to come, and all of it is not good, but you have known of this time. A great visitation will accompany anything the devil thinks he can do to reverse it you will see what I can do. But be strong and move forward in Me now, for I can, through the power of the Holy Spirit, testify [of] Myself when I can find a people who will offer their whole life up. And I can work it is hard for Me to describe [to you] the wonders that I can do when somebody is fully turned over to Me, for you will know that these could not happen to a city lest I was involved in it. And I will be, says the Lord. -3-

7 PT130710D Jul 10, 2013 An Era When My Mysteries Will Be Understood When one prophesies, the Church is edified, the town it is in. [When one] prays in tongues, he edifies himself, and the reason is, he begins to understand the mysteries that God has and pertaining to him and his call. For there is much the Church does not understand and I am talking about the Church of obedience that will follow Me that is the fullness of the mysteries that I have yet to reveal. For you have heard all your lives, for generations: The works I do, you will do also, and even greater than these, for I go to the Father. These signs shall follow them that believe. You have heard these sayings, but know this: There will be an era, an era that My mysteries will be understood. And My power will be so powerful, you will see entire cities bowing their knees to what I have said and what I have done. So rejoice to see this time, for you are within range of it. PT130710E Jul 10, 2013 If You Believed I Healed You, Then Say So For you who did not receive your healing you who did not at this point: Do you believe? Do you believe that I healed you? If you believe I healed you without being able to feel it, then say so. Say so, for you are not changing My mind. I have already healed you. What you are doing is changing yourself from someone who can t receive it to someone who can. Evidently, you can t keep saying it without ending up believing it. PT130710F Jul 10, 2013 People Will Be Collecting Their Sick and Bringing Them You will remember this night when people will be collecting their sick and bringing them for what I did to the ones who were brought before that and before that and before that. You will look back and remember this night, for this night is when I was able to take a little step forward into that by the power of the Holy Spirit. So when you see something that is unusual, and maybe even something you don t quite understand, look up and rejoice and know that there are many, many things I have longed to give those who seek Me and have not been able to through many of the generations. So be strong. Be strong. PT Jul 14, 2013 By His Blood, Your Past Is Cleansed Take your past as of five minutes ago and bundle it up and let it go. It doesn t matter if you think you may fail again. That is not the point. The point is: By His blood, -4-

8 your past is cleansed. Don t hold onto it anymore. Let go of it and thank Him. Thank Him for how much He loves you how much Jesus has provided for you from the Cross. PT130717A July 17, 2013 Allow Me to Be Your Victory Take strength from Me I am your Strength. Take courage from Me I am your Courage, your Hope, your Healer, your Rewarder. That is Me. The enemy will concoct devious plans against you to assault you, to batter you from all different sides and for many different, devious reasons. You you are not strength, but I am, so do not fear the attack of the enemy. It is not your fight to win. He has already been defeated. You are free today to receive all the strength, all the courage, all the hope, all that you need from Me. Allow Me to be your Victory also. You are not alone in this. Allow Me to be your Victory. PT130717B July 17, 2013 I Am With You When the sun sets, I am still here. I am always here. When the sun comes up, I have always been here. So in those times when you have felt alone, those times you felt abandoned the overwhelming emotions I am there. I am here. I am with you. I never left. We can walk through this. We can walk through this, you and I, and when you are asleep, I will be there. PT130717C July 17, 2013 Thank You for Not Taking Your Own Path Thank you. Thank you for putting your life into My hands. Thank you for trusting Me. When everything spoke to you and said, This can t be God, you didn t run. You stayed with Me. Oh, I have wonderful things for us to do. Thank you for trusting Me with your life, with your steps. What I can do when I have a partner who will allow Me to guide his steps so many lives will be changed and touched. Thank you for trusting Me. Thank you for walking with Me. Thank you for not taking your own path. PT130717D July 17, 2013 When You Feel Like It Is Over It Is Not When you feel like it is over, just remember that it is not. Look back and look at all the many, many, many, many times, all the victories look at all the many, many times that I stood there with you. So why would I not be here tomorrow? It is not over. It is not over. -5-