Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Matthew 13:31-32

When faith begins, it begins as a seed.  A seed sown, the name of Jesus, and faith comes into the heart.  A man believes unto salvation, and a new thing is born.

When faith grows, it begins its work, even as a yeast within a dough, or fermentation within a wine.  It does its work secretly, silently, producing changes through the whole.

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Imagine for a moment that the church made a shift, that it turned a corner, and that instead of holiness being a marginal topic, one that is sometimes talked about, but seldom embraced, imagine that it was suddenly the norm for Christians again to expect holiness in their meetings, in their ministers, and in their people’s daily lives.

What if there was a dramatic shift in the body, only possible by God, of course, so that the whole of mainstream Christianity was revitalized, revived even, so that we had a living, active knowledge of God on a personal basis from God teaching us Himself? Read more…

Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Romans 6:16

When the eye is single, the whole body is full of light…  When I come upon Him, with nothing else to gain, I stand forever in His Glory.

His is the one I am after; He is the one I adore.  There is no other, there is no better, there is none greater.

For all else in the heavens are as nothing, and all else upon the Earth are dust.

Where is the secret of your presence, that I might come, and abide, and stay. Read more…

Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.

Isaiah 42:1-4

Jesus said His yoke was easy, and His burden was light. The essence and key to correct ministry is found in these words.  As long as our ministry is heaven and our labor hard to our souls, we are doing more than we ought, or doing it wrong.  While there is grace and mercy to learn, we must learn, and find that place of ministering by His Spirit alone, not out our selves or our own strength, but by Him alone. Read more…

I just love teaching. Oh, my. I–I–I think it’s wonderful. It gives the basis and settles the church.
And in preaching, now, there’s some people that are preachers. They can pick up the Word with inspiration, and sway It out there in places. That’s watering the Seeds that the teacher has taught. See? Now, you got to put some Seed in first, and then water It. And the watering comes from the preaching of the Word.
There’s a great vast difference between a teacher and a preacher. See? It’s two different gifts of the Spirit altogether, two different gifts. And I humbly say this, but I haven’t a gift of either.

But mine, as of usual, is praying for the sick. That’s what the Lord called me to do. And then, in this time it gives a relaxation of my mind to study on something different, not having Divine healing services, just–just teaching the Word. And oh, we get along pretty good here. We… I remember, you put up with me for a long time, about twelve years around here, on it.

–William Branham, The Seven Church Ages (54-0512 p16-19)

The Bible is clear when it comes to judging the motives of one’s heart out of our own fleshly, soulish pride.

 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

Luke 6:37

Unless by the Spirit the Lord reveals the heart of another, the fate of another, or the motives, we must not give way to soulish judgment, wisdom of the flesh, or the like.

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For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Romans 8:14

The ground floor of the church building is the life of the Spirit, that is, being led by Him.

There is no other life, no other functional place of ministry than to be spiritually minded, and any ministry that occurs outside of that will only reproduce after its own kind.  Any other form of church is a hollow, man-made shell, with no lasting fruit nor legacy.

Jesus came and demonstrated the first spirit-led life.  He was cut off from this Earth through the waters of baptism, lived apart and separated in the Spirit realm of the Holy Ghost, and only after His death was he granted brothers.

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Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:
I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;

Isaiah 42:1-6

The eyes of the Lord are perfect, they are whole.  The knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ was perfect upon the Earth.  While it may not need to be said, while he walked upon the Earth, He only walked in perfection while in His flesh.

Consider the woman caught in adultery.  No doubt, she had many sins in her life other than the adultery.  Assuredly, there were underlying factors to this, this led to that, which led to that, which always occurs when someone eventually commits adultery.  It never comes out of thin air, but there is usually a host of other problems that leads one down the wrong road. But, Jesus barely addressed the issue directly, only to tell her to sin no more, lest something worse happen.

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Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved. He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.

John 5:33-35

Light reveals.  Light illuminates.  Light is righteousness, and darkness is evil.

In all places, the true light that gives light to every man, Jesus Christ, is always a portrait of illumination, but also of righteousness.  It is the voice of Him who is above, who is true light, the Father of Lights.

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For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

The issue of the ages is a sin issue.

It has never been an issue of the knowledge of good versus evil, for that is God’s domain, and we were told to steer clear of it, but it has always been about sin.

From the beginning, it has always been about Life in Obedience.

The law was added due to the increase of transgressions.  God’s standard of right has never changed, but it was added.  It was God’s perfect righteousness.

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Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:

1 Peter 1:22

To love each other from the heart, to this we were called.

 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

Matthew 18:35

To forgive each other from the heart, of this we are required.

The Kingdom consists of that which is from the heart, and from love.  This is the substance of our Grace, the flavor of our abundant life (John 10:10), and the essence of our existence.

Yet, it is where we, for the most part, do not find ourselves always living.

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