The anointing of the Holy Ghost alone breaks the yoke. The Kingdom of God does not move except by the Holy Spirit. "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63) That is not to say that God does not depend on His servants. We are indeed laborers together with Him, but it is the spirit of man that Christ anoints and not the flesh. The flesh must be crucified, die, and be kept under the grace of sanctification so that the resurrection life of Jesus Christ can be manifest by the Holy Spirit. Man is a three-part personality – body, soul, and spirit. The body’s nature is sin and selfishness, but the spirit of man is God-like after it has been renewed in redemption. In the unconverted soul, the spirit is dead, hushed, and locked in the prison of sin’s bondage. When the soul is born again, that spirit of man is renewed, released, set free, and soars like an eagle if allowed to do so by the death of the flesh.

Man’s flesh must die daily – kept locked in the death of the cross – so that the spirit can be free to grow in the new nature of Christ. Apostle Paul said, "For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." (Romans 8:5-7) This new life is explosive and dynamic, but only in the disciplined life of surrender. Even the body where flesh used to reign will be set free from the self-nature and worldliness to walk in holiness and purity. Paul did not fail to say this plainly. "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you." (Romans 8:11) The Holy Spirit will aid the new convert to break loose from sin’s past and to become the dwelling place of the Holy Ghost. Your body was meant to be a temple, a dwelling place of God by His Spirit, but the multitudes of religious folks have been taught to keep on sinning. What a travesty over truth.

The Holy Ghost, if given complete mastery, will give you the unction to rise above the bondage of flesh. With the yoke of flesh broken by the blood, your spirit will begin to yield to His Divine Spirit and life will be like a river of living waters. ". If any man thirsts, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." (John 7:37b-38). The Word of God plainly says, ".Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (II Corinthians 3:17) The only life worth living is that life under the control of the Word of God and His Spirit. "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:2) Any man that preaches anything else, but this, is misguided and wrong.

So much of the church world, even when they seek righteousness, seek it by the flesh and the rules of men and forsake the righteousness which is of God alone. We need the commandments of God and all the principles of righteousness revealed in His Holy Bible, but just doing them by our own works is not God’s plan. We must seek righteousness by faith and cling to the sanctifying powers of His blood and then obey truth out of a pure heart. When the heart is pure by His grace and blood, pure conduct and holiness living will be the natural results. It will not have to be forced and contrived. If you must force a man to live right, his heart is unconverted and his flesh is untamed.

The Holy Ghost was given to enable man to become all that God intended. The Spirit is a person, a divine being, and the third member of the Godhead. He is on a mission for Christ. He is careful to never take honor to Himself. He is limited by your surrender to Jesus Christ and His Lordship. His only tool or sword in your life is the Word of God. While He is the Spirit of Truth, He can only use in your life the truth that you have written upon your heart. His place of labor is Christ’s church, and lone rangers have no right to Him. His mission is to empower you with His gifts of supernatural power. He will seal you and set a guard at the door of your heart. He is the porter before the Holy of Holies, and He guides the seeking soul to the throne room of prayer. Angels and cherubims move in His wake,’ and He is restraining the Antichrist until the Christ has come.

The kingdom of God is ".Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts." (Zechariah 4:6) If we are willing to deny the flesh and its mastery and turn wholly to faith, God the Father and God the Son will send God the Spirit to empower His church for victory. Flesh cannot inherit the kingdom; flesh is earthbound and will never appear in His presence. Christ has come to defeat flesh for the willing and to create a whole new man. That new man will be indwelt by his Spirit, filled with His baptism of the Holy Ghost, and sent into the world just like the Father sent Him. Will you go for Him?

The first principle of every great move of God is the saints learning that flesh is not the answer. You cannot lean on the arm of the flesh and believe wholly in the Lord at the same time. The Apostle Paul that shook many cities with a Sovereign visitation of the Lord’s power said, "For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh." (Philippians 3:3) Why did Jesus say, "Ye must be born again."? Jesus answered, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again." (John 3:6-7) The flesh can never produce life either before you are born again or after you are born again. "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63)

What a life-changing truth this is for the church. We labor with our many schemes to change our communities and our families and, yet, nothing is happening. Often, we just get worn out with it all. The church world is full of pastors and congregations that have simply given up or turned the church into a social club. The new contemporary direction of the church says, "If we can’t reach them God’s way, we will simply reach them their way." But, flesh produces nothing but flesh, so the church has hired a flock of psychologists and small-time counselors to help deal with a church full of flesh. One leader of a mega church confidentially said to me, "Our backdoor is the same width as our front door." A church full of flesh is earthbound and is not going anywhere when the trumpet sounds.

Leading evangelical ministers have produced all kinds of temperament scales to help the flesh in their congregation learn how to deal with their flesh. Of course, there is some degree of self-help in learning one’s temperament. They can grab themselves by the boot strings and beat that old flesh into shape. The Roman church has used this style of religious work for centuries. When a church claims salvation by faith, but then turns to flesh-controlled temperament training, they reveal the duplicity of their own beliefs. The message to the Galatians is powerful. "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain." (Galatians 3:1-4) That truth will change your life.

God’s Divine Spirit, the third person of the Godhead, was sent to indwell the temples of the Lord’s saints. Every born again believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. ". Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." (Romans 8:9) That Spirit is very God and very Christ living in the very temple of His saints, and He is there to do everything needed to produce Jesus Christ likeness in that saint. To depend on flesh techniques and schemes is to lean on the arm of the flesh. ". Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm ." (Jeremiah 17:5) This is the reason that the church is weak, effeminate, and practically helpless. Flesh is operating fleshly and the church is utterly dependent on every new trend coming down the religious path.

Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life is absolutely no different than the Roman Catholic Mass and confessionals. It’s all driven by the schemes of the flesh and the search for how man can produce the righteousness of God with a big dose of flesh. The next mega preacher and his mega book will produce another flurry of religious excitement and the church world will be a lot closer to the New World Religion of the beast. As long as the flesh is the method and the result is still flesh, the world will love it and the preacher will be a champion.

A sad truth will be evident in the near future when the King returns. "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption." (I Corinthians 15:50) A born again Christian is a new creation. The most radical transformation on the face of God’s earth is the converted soul that has been washed in the blood and renewed in his spirit. No one will need to strip that soul of the habits and bondages of the flesh. "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (II Corinthians 5:17) The Holy Spirit at work in a surrendered life for one instant is worth a lifetime of a psychologist and all his folly.

If you doubt me, I challenge you to give the Lord one week to prove me right. One week spent depending on nothing but prayer, the Word of God, the blood of Jesus, and a constant spirit of total surrender is all I ask. Tell God if He does not prove me right that you will give it all up after that week and go back to your own scheme. "O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him." (Psalm 34:8-9) I’m not even worried that He will fail.

The Lord of the church has always had apostles, dedicated warriors, and a remnant of genuine believers. I love reading of such men and women, and I just found a book that is filled with their stories. It is entitled The Pilgrim Church and tells their testimonies from the first century to 1930 AD. Dave Hunt wrote the forward for the reprinted edition, it was first printed in 1931. Not many years after Pentecost, doctrines contrary to the Word of God found their way into circles within the church but were soundly rejected by the Pilgrim churches. The Lord commended the Church of Ephesus for rejecting the deeds of the Nicolaitanes. "But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate." (Revelation 2:6) By the time of the Pergamos church this doctrine had been received because the Lord said, "So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate." (Revelation 2:15) The Nicolaitane crowd was now entrenched.

One such unwavering pilgrim was Basil Malof. Born in Latvia, he was the son of a Godly Baptist minister and was converted at fifteen years of age. After being called to preach, he attended the college that was established by Spurgeon in London, England. He then went to Russia and began a fruitful ministry there. After reading the story of John Knox and his intercessory prayer life, Basil said, "If John Knox can claim all Scotland, cannot I claim all Russia?" He translated his favorite hymn and led congregations in singing it until their singing would reach into the heavenlies. The words are beautiful: "Thou art coming to a King, Large petitions with thee bring, For His grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much."

God’s church is the seat of His authority in this world. The word church is mentioned one hundred and seventeen times in the New Testament. By the Holy Ghost, Luke stated in the Book of Acts, "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood." (Acts 20:28) Jesus said, ".Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18) Luke called the church a "flock." The gifts are in the church, His authority is in the church, ". and the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." (Acts 2:47b)

Another important word is temple, which is also named one hundred and seventeen times in the New Testament. The believer is the temple where the Holy Spirit takes up residence. The Spirit does not abide in the church, but in the temples of saints and they bring that presence into the church. The church may be small or large, a house or a cathedral, but it is not His church until the Lord walks "in the midst of the . candlesticks." (Revelation 1:13) We must learn that the Pilgrim church is the Spirit-led church that is ordered by nothing less than the infallible Word of God and a sovereign work of His Spirit.

The book, The Pilgrim Church, shows how every effort to stamp out the true-blue believers never succeeded. The more of them that were martyred, the more they grew. Almost every corner of our earth at one time or another has been greatly affected by the faithful believers. Countries, now totally given to the Moslem religion, were once bastions of the church. Constantinople, now present Istanbul, Turkey, was the seat of the Eastern Roman Empire and was alternately swayed by a dead church system and then at times a great return to truth and revival. The Anabaptists, United Brethren, Hussites, Waldenses, and Albigenses, plus thousands of individual churches, have played a part in keeping a Pilgrim church alive in every century from the apostles until the present. The gates of Hell have not prevailed and will not prevail. In His sermon at His Olivet discourse, Jesus said, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Matthew 24:14) The church will have the last Word.

The Lord Jesus Christ is still searching the world for a people and for His church and, when He finds it, He walks in the midst of that church. The seven letters to the seven churches were His last written instructions to His church. He promised to return for His bride and that promise is alive and well right now. To the church of brotherly love, Philadelphia, He said, "Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth." (Revelation 3:10)

Every saint of God must develop a genuine hatred of sin, especially the damages of sin. It leaves marks everywhere it touches. Just like fire, you cannot touch it without being burned. Sin is the cruelest enemy of man and has reduced the greatest of men with its impact. The acts of sin may be manifest in hidden places, but hiding sin is like hiding fire; it burns through. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” (I John 3:4) The Bible is the one single book that names sin perfectly. Both Testaments have united to give us the clear warning of sin, never to restrict, but always to protect. God is perfect and pure Himself and manifests no hidden motives in naming sin. Sin is always and in every case a manifestation of something dark in our nature from which the Father longs to protect us.

Sin touches man in three destructive ways. It first is manifest in our emotions, second in our conscience, and lastly in our spirit. Sin would have no effect if it did not touch our emotions. The tree in the garden looked enticing to Eve. Men steal because they lust, men lie because it covers up, and men fornicate because of the fire of desire. The body of man is filled with needs and all of those needs are manifest in emotions. The disciplined person regulates those emotions and refuses to be controlled by feelings. A good man loves his wife and refuses to “look on a maiden.” A godly single person has pure anticipation for marriage and refuses the thought of losing their innocence. Because iniquity abounds, men today are driven by emotions and they have lost the fear of God.

Conscience is the heart of purity. A pure sense of right and wrong is the foundation of righteousness. Undisciplined homes, schools, and society can destroy a conscience in our childhood and youth. When the emotions of sin have had their fling, then the conscience must be damaged to cover their tracks. ItÂ’s hard to live with a defiled conscience, so man begins to justify the sin and thereby damages the conscience. Once the conscience is driven by sin, then life goes down the drain. Our society, even the church world, has almost no sense of right and wrong. The entire culture has begun to suffer incredible destruction.

The last step in sin’s path is the spirit or heart of man. The Bible calls man’s spirit or heart the eye of the human body. It’s the God-breathed aspect of man by which we can relate to God and even have intimate fellowship with Him. No man can be converted, born again, and transformed to a new creature except when God’s Holy Spirit can touch that man’s spirit. The Bible calls it “conviction.” It’s one of the grandest actions of the Holy Spirit. It is not an arbitrary action and cannot occur until God has man’s attention.

When sin has damaged the human spirit, darkness invades the total life. Jesus Christ spoke some of His greatest words on this subject. He said, “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22-23) We live in a world where the multitudes have paid no attention to sin until the spirit of man is dark and black; and they walk the path to hell and know it not. The church refuses to talk of sin and righteousness and justifies the sin nature like it’s a prize to treasure. Sin never fails to damage the emotion, then the conscience, and then the spirit. When man’s spirit has been invaded, the “lights go out” and even God cannot touch that soul. That’s the point of blaspheming the Holy Spirit when the lights have gone out. Nothing can do this kind of damage but sin.

No wonder Jesus said, “How great is that darkness!” As we approach the zero hour for this generation and the Rapture is about to occur, the saints of God must relearn the truth of God concerning sin and be His witnesses of its darkness. When sin finishes, it is midnight to that soul. Sin turns out the light and that man goes straight downward. There are multitudes that still have hope. Our business is to tell the world of Jesus’ cleansing blood and the authority of His name. A saint of God can be so full of Jesus’ light that it beams from his face and then men cannot help but see. Allow His Spirit to possess you, fill you, and give special attention to its glow on your face. Let your word be seasoned with His love and be His witness.

Every saint of God must develop a genuine hatred of sin, especially the damages of sin. It leaves marks everywhere it touches. Just like fire, you cannot touch it without being burned. Sin is the cruelest enemy of man and has reduced the greatest of men with its impact. The acts of sin may be manifest in hidden places, but hiding sin is like hiding fire; it burns through. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” (I John 3:4) The Bible is the one single book that names sin perfectly. Both Testaments have united to give us the clear warning of sin, never to restrict, but always to protect. God is perfect and pure Himself and manifests no hidden motives in naming sin. Sin is always and in every case a manifestation of something dark in our nature from which the Father longs to protect us.

Sin touches man in three destructive ways. It first is manifest in our emotions, second in our conscience, and lastly in our spirit. Sin would have no effect if it did not touch our emotions. The tree in the garden looked enticing to Eve. Men steal because they lust, men lie because it covers up, and men fornicate because of the fire of desire. The body of man is filled with needs and all of those needs are manifest in emotions. The disciplined person regulates those emotions and refuses to be controlled by feelings. A good man loves his wife and refuses to “look on a maiden.” A godly single person has pure anticipation for marriage and refuses the thought of losing their innocence. Because iniquity abounds, men today are driven by emotions and they have lost the fear of God.

Conscience is the heart of purity. A pure sense of right and wrong is the foundation of righteousness. Undisciplined homes, schools, and society can destroy a conscience in our childhood and youth. When the emotions of sin have had their fling, then the conscience must be damaged to cover their tracks. ItÂ’s hard to live with a defiled conscience, so man begins to justify the sin and thereby damages the conscience. Once the conscience is driven by sin, then life goes down the drain. Our society, even the church world, has almost no sense of right and wrong. The entire culture has begun to suffer incredible destruction.

The last step in sin’s path is the spirit or heart of man. The Bible calls man’s spirit or heart the eye of the human body. It’s the God-breathed aspect of man by which we can relate to God and even have intimate fellowship with Him. No man can be converted, born again, and transformed to a new creature except when God’s Holy Spirit can touch that man’s spirit. The Bible calls it “conviction.” It’s one of the grandest actions of the Holy Spirit. It is not an arbitrary action and cannot occur until God has man’s attention.

When sin has damaged the human spirit, darkness invades the total life. Jesus Christ spoke some of His greatest words on this subject. He said, “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22-23) We live in a world where the multitudes have paid no attention to sin until the spirit of man is dark and black; and they walk the path to hell and know it not. The church refuses to talk of sin and righteousness and justifies the sin nature like it’s a prize to treasure. Sin never fails to damage the emotion, then the conscience, and then the spirit. When man’s spirit has been invaded, the “lights go out” and even God cannot touch that soul. That’s the point of blaspheming the Holy Spirit when the lights have gone out. Nothing can do this kind of damage but sin.

No wonder Jesus said, “How great is that darkness!” As we approach the zero hour for this generation and the Rapture is about to occur, the saints of God must relearn the truth of God concerning sin and be His witnesses of its darkness. When sin finishes, it is midnight to that soul. Sin turns out the light and that man goes straight downward. There are multitudes that still have hope. Our business is to tell the world of Jesus’ cleansing blood and the authority of His name. A saint of God can be so full of Jesus’ light that it beams from his face and then men cannot help but see. Allow His Spirit to possess you, fill you, and give special attention to its glow on your face. Let your word be seasoned with His love and be His witness.