John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

In the above verses we have evidence from both God the Father in the Old Testament and Jesus Christ the Son in the New Testament that if we will love and obey, they will come to us and dwell within our very being. As believers and followers of Christ, His indwelling should be our primary goal. In today's world we are deluged with religions of all kinds. We are bombarded with rhetoric using the name of Jesus. But there is little knowledge or understanding today of what the true Gospel of Christ is. Like little children, we are quick to say "I know, I know," when in reality we are void of comprehension. This is evidenced by our lack of power and discernment. Take special note of what our Lord said here. If a man love me, he will keep my words. We cannot love the Lord and love ourselves equally. It is impossible for us to keep His words in our own strength, which is why we so desperately need the indwelling of Christ within. If we fail to keep His words, then our professed love is shallow and has no real root or substance; we will fall. It is time to wake up and realize that all of God's promises to man are conditional. It is for us individually to respond in like manner to God's greatest gift. Our part in this love exchange is to walk in obedience to God's commandments rather than to satisfy our flesh, to seek the approval of God rather than what we want or the approval of men.

Multitudes alive today have never experienced or been witness to the anointed outpouring of the Spirit of God. Many cannot tell the difference between the presence of God and the manifestation of soul power, or between the voice of God and that of a familiar spirit. The farther removed we become from the truth that is found in Christ; the more easily we are deceived by that which is counterfeit. We do not fully comprehend that lip service does not make us a child of God. The world is full of people professing to be Christian, yet demonstrating none of the attributes of Christ. It is not enough to satisfy the requirements of men. To meet the standards set by men for holiness and acceptable conduct is to fall short of the commandments of Christ. The reason for this is that in our flesh we are incapable of filling Christ's commandments. It is only by the power of the Christ within that man can fulfill God's commandments.

An example is found in the 14th chapter of St. John. John 14:8-10 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Consider that Philip was a disciple of Christ, he spent a great deal of time in the Lord's presence and heard his teachings. He thought he believed. Yet he lacked the full comprehension of the Lord's words.

How much more today are we failing to hear with full comprehension the words of Christ? John 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. If we claim to love the Lord, but have no manifestation of Him in our daily lives, we need to examine our relationship. There is a vast difference between accumulating head knowledge about Christ and having the risen Lord abiding within your earthen vessel, guiding your daily steps through life. Head knowledge will not change the world, set men free or defeat the enemy. Only the power of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords operating through your surrendered life will achieve the results God desires.

What we know and accept as representing God is a far cry from the reality of God. What we know and accept as worship, as being holy, as operating under the anointing of the Spirit often have no connection to what God desires from his people. Modern man is definitely seeing through a glass darkly.

One of the most difficult things for us to do individually is to receive the truths in God's Word personally. We have no problem seeing the shortcomings and needs in others, but have a much harder time recognizing our own shortcomings. It is far easier to attribute the lessons to be found in the Word of God to the other guy; to some other country; to a time other than the present. There is a very good reason why this is so common. It is our human nature. The greatest obstacle we must face and overcome in this life is that of putting down our old man, and allowing God to transform us into spirit beings. Only by the power of the Spirit can we be transformed into people who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. I want to share some things the Lord has recently quickened to me concerning our acceptance of the role of religion in our lives.

Two men of God have shared with me similar experiences:

Years ago one was sent by God to work for a prominent world evangelist as a maintenance man in his church. He held this position for one year, during which time he witnessed many troubling things going on behind the scenes. The evangelist became ill, and this man went into the church late one night when no one else was there to pray for him. As he was kneeling at the altar sincerely praying, he became aware of an enormous black spirit that filled the entire front of the auditorium. It's head was as high as the vaulted ceiling and seemed to fill the auditorium with it's evil presence. The man immediately stopped praying. He knew within that this spirit was the guiding, controlling force behind this church. He was scared and got out as quickly as he could. Shortly after that experience God released him from working at this church. The Lord told him, "This is that you might know."

Another man had a similar experience in his youth:

He was in his early teens and had attended a youth meeting. Afterward one of the other young men was mocking and blaspheming God. The young man was so troubled by his companion's actions that he went into the sanctuary to pray. He was walking up and down the aisle praying in his prayer language, when he became aware of an enormous, powerful black spirit filling the front of the sanctuary. In his youth, his first reaction was to pray against this monstrous spirit. The spirit spoke to him and said, "You'd better get out of here. You don't know who your messing with." The young man ran out of the church and never went back.

These are not simply rare or freak experiences. They are far more common and widespread than one might think. There is scriptural validation of why these things occurred. The apostle Paul admonishes us in Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Consider the following passages from Isaiah.

Isaiah 14:12-14 O Lucifer, son of the morning! How thou art cast down to the ground (earth, world), which didst weaken (prostrate, overthrow, decay) the nations (people)! For thou hast said in thine heart (mind, understanding), I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt (presumptuously promote) my throne above the stars (figuratively a prince) of God: I will sit (dwell, inhabit, make to keep house,) also upon the mount of the congregation (place of meeting; an appointment; that is a fixed time or season; also a signal, appointed beforehand) in the sides (properly the flank, rear or recess; border, coast, part, quarter, side) of the north (properly hidden, that is dark; used only of the north as a quarter (gloomy & unknown): I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like (compare, resemble) the Most High.[Amplified]

Here is a seriously ignored condition that is rooted in religion. It is as old as the Garden of Eden, yet mankind continually falls victim to the same deception. We substitute religion for relationship. Jesus did not come and invite us to join his church. He invited us to partake of his life. The devil is the master deceiver. He delights in masquerading among the chosen people of God as an angel of light. He is just as adept and capable at sitting over the congregations today as in any other time down through history. The only way one will ever gain discernment and learn to recognize the deceiver of the people is by pressing into a relationship with Jesus Christ. By partaking of every Word Jesus spoke and allowing the Living Word to change us from within. All of man's focus is on the outer. Our judgments are carnal and self-serving. The spirit and the flesh will always clash and be at odds. Multitudes today are following after a resemblance of the Most High. Just like all the generations that preceded us, we fall victim to creature comforts. We rejoice in our padded pews and grand edifices, as a symbol of God's approval of us. We interpret creature comforts as validation that we are walking in truth and righteousness.

We mistakenly think that if we believe in the gifts of the spirit we are somehow elevated above the enemies reach. As long as we are immersed in religion, we are not a threat to the enemy. We only become dangerous to the kingdom of darkness as we make our personal relationship with Jesus Christ our number one priority. The devil doesn't mind a bit if we gather together and sing the songs that are pleasing to our ears. He doesn't care if we admire and lift up one another for our gifts and talents. As long as we do not learn how to worship God with a meek and quiet spirit, as long as we do not desire God's will above our own, as long as we lack spiritual discernment and fail to walk in the spirit, we are not a threat to him. Further corroboration that the enemy dwells in the religious institutions of men is found in the Psalms.

Psalm 74:2-4 Remember (think on) thy congregation (people), which thou hast purchased (procure, possess, own, redeem) of old (aforetime, eternal, everlasting); the rod (branch, scepter, staff, tribe) of thine inheritance (estate, portion, possession) which thou hast redeemed (to be the next of kin, to buy back, avenge, deliver, ransom); this mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt (to reside or permanently stay). Lift up thy feet unto the perpetual (a goal, the bright object at a distance traveled towards, splendor, truthfulness, confidence, strength) desolations (ruin, destruction); even all that the enemy (adversary, foe) hath done wickedly (make (or be) good for nothing) in the sanctuary (sacred, consecrated, hallowed, holy place or thing). Thine enemies (adversaries) roar (rumble or moan mightily) in the midst (center part, within self) of thy congregations (assembly, convened for a definite purpose); they set up (put, appoint, disguise, purpose) their ensigns (signal, beacon, monument, prodigy, evidence, mark, miracle) for signs (mark, miracle, sign token).[Amplified]

The enemy of our eternal souls does not sleep or slumber. From the days of old he has been infiltrating sanctuaries and making the fruits wrought therein good for nothing but to be trodden underfoot. All the while using signs and wonders to validate his legitimacy. Just because the religions men have established may be all we have ever known, does not mean that it is all there is.

The following verse in Isaiah declares the state of the world today.

Isaiah 60:2 For, behold, the darkness (misery, destruction death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness), shall cover (fill up, overwhelm) the earth (world), and gross darkness (thick gloom) the people: but the Lord shall arise (irradiate, appear) upon thee, and his glory (weight, splendor, honor) shall be seen (consider, discern, experience, take heed) upon thee.

As never before in the history of the world, people are enveloped in gross, thick darkness. This darkness is a spiritual darkness. We say we have the truth and the light, all the while we are locked away in our individual institutions of men, separated one from another. Jesus said in Rev. 3:17-19 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Jesus was not addressing the condition of the sinners of the world, he was speaking to the Church. When Jesus charged us to love your neighbor as yourself, that neighbor was not restricted to the one sitting next to you in the pew on Sunday morning, or just to those who share the same doctrinal ideas you hold. It extends to every man, woman and child that you encounter throughout your entire life.