How to get the Gifts of the Spirit working?

[KeptByTheWord]

God does not need us to work out His will. He can use an animal if He so chooses.

However, I believe because of His great love and mercy, He DESIRES to use willing, submitted and consecrated vessels to work as He wills.

And, it does seem that once a gift is given to someone, that after the initial giving, that gift can be used in a life that is not submitted or consecrated to God, which is certainly something I don't understand, but have certainly seen it many times.

I believe that is why we are taught NOT to follow signs and wonders. It is a very complicated, intricate thing that we are talking about here, and most of all, we must be led by the Spirit of the Lord.

If a person was once used in the Spirit mightily, and has become lifted up, arrogant, and proud because of the use of that gift, the Spirit of the Lord departs, and yet, the gift can remain. It is for this reason that people have been led astray, following signs, and wonders, and gifts operating through the life of an unconsecrated vessel, to their own destruction. I am thinking of William Branham for instance.

We are never to follow signs, wonders, prophecies, and supernatural events. All of these things should point us to Jesus, and never to follow flesh, but that is exactly what usually happens. People see the gift of the spirit operating in someone's life, and turn their focus from Jesus, and begin to put that person on a pedestal, so to speak, and in turn, that person can begin to have pride, and we all know what happens when you have pride, it comes before a fall.

So in essence, if the gifts of the spirit are in operation in a person's life, we should not lift up or worship the vessel that is operating the gifts, but give all glory to God. When the glory shifts to the vessel, instead of the Lord, then the spirit of the Lord will depart, as he will not share his glory with another, and that person may or may not continue to have gifts, but they won't be edifying to the church.

It is a dangerous thing to receive the gift, and then begin to believe that you are "something special" because the Lord was gracious enough to give it to you. HOW one chooses to live and operate that gift, will in turn depend on how edifying to the church that gift will be.

Truly, it has already been said in this post before... the only way to receive and keep a gift that is edifying to the church is to stay consecrated, and not allow people to worship you because you are operating supernatually, but always turn that focus to the Lord, and never let yourself even receive a bit of the glory. Never. God will not share His glory with another, and if you desire to keep the gift operational, and beneficial to the church, you must be willing to always give God the glory.

I do believe more teaching does need to be done in this area, so people can understand that we are not to worship the gift, but the GIVER who gave the gift... and to not worship the vessel who operates the gift, but to worship the GIVER through whom all blessings flow.