Partners in His Power - Lesson 1 - Kings and Priests

A teaching by Evangelist Stuart Gramenz

WALKING IN THE POWER AND FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT


REMOVING FEARS


INTRODUCTION
This course has been compiled to help Christians to release the potential power of the Holy Spirit. Dealing with the gifts of the Spirit and the fruits of the Spirit, it provides the foundation for believers to lead a Spirit led lifestyle.
“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Gal 5:25

“Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not hold it as an idea in our heads, or sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives.” Gal 5:25 MSG


REMOVING BLOCKAGES

He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; John 7:38-39

This Scripture indicates that every believer should have the power and gifts of the Spirit spontaneously flowing out from them.
If cluttered up with leaves, a gutter on the roof of a house will not allow the water to flow. Many believers have “leaves” of fears and unbelief that will not allow the rivers of living water to flow through them.

The course is not only aimed at knowledge of fruit, gifts and power of the Spirit but to act as a spiritual sweeper in removing the fears that limit so many.

Basically each equipping time is divided into two sections.
1. Teaching presentations (each approx. 35 minutes)
2. Practical Activation workshops.

When discussing this particular subject there can be a tendency to glorify the Holy Spirit above Jesus, but we must remember what He said of the Spirit.

“He will glorify Me, for He will take what is mine and declare it to you.”
John 16:1:4.
THE BLOCKAGE OF FEAR
There is a great need to release the potential power of all Christians to enable us, like Paul, to say;



“And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God..” 1 Cor. 2:4-5

Just prior to that stirring statement Paul said in verse 3

“I was with you in weakness in fear and much trembling.”

Although shaking with fear, he was able to overcome it and saw God’s power released through him.
Today, many Christians are held back from moving in the power of the Spirit through fear.

PAUL’S “PRESCRIPTION”
How did Paul overcome his fear? We are given insight in his letter to Timothy who is suffering from a similar problem. Paul passes on his wisdom and his spiritual prescription.
“Therefore I remind you to stir up the Gift of God which is in you through the laying on of hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power of love and a sound mind.” 2 Tim. 1: 6,7

• Timothy is not operating in his God given gift.
• Paul is rebuking him for it.
• He gives the reason for the failure - fear.
• He also gives the solution a ‘spiritual recipe’ to remove that fear.
• The solution - ingredients of POWER - LOVE - SOUND MIND.
• Paul “reminds” him. As Paul’s disciple, Timothy would have had teaching on the importance of love, power, and a sound mind, but he needed to recall and meditate on each of them. • Each word would have reminded him of the specific truths, filled him with faith, and seen him advance in God’s power once again.

We will remind you of each of the 3 parts of the spiritual prescription and trust that fear will be removed and a new faith to minister in the Spirit will result.

POWER
For many there is what we call a limited power expectancy. As long as we are
born again, water baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit, many feel they have
arrived.
Born again = Being created a new spiritual baby.
Water Baptised & filled with Holy Spirit = Kindergarten.

These are not an end in themselves, they are the initial preparation needed to
get you into Grade 1 in God’s spiritual school.
In this school of the Spirit you learn step by step how to release all your
potential power until you reach a university level of ministry. What is the
university level?

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will
do also, and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.”
John 14:12

In many cases we have a church tradition which tells us we must wait for some
time before gifts of the Spirit can be released through us.
However the disciples of John the Baptist were able to prophesy immediately
they were filled with the power of the Spirit.

“And when Paul laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they
spoke with tongues and prophesied.” Acts 19:6

SPIRITUAL TERMINOLOGY
There are also some words used which can imply to believers that only
‘special’ people can operate in any great power.
Some words such as ‘anointing’ are not clearly understood.
Many know that the pastor or other leaders are ‘anointed’ but when it comes to
them they are not sure.
There is a sense in many Christians that, “One day when I am mature enough
perhaps God will anoint me.”
The word ‘anointing’ is used in the Old Testament referring to perfumed
anointing oil.

“And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded
according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil.”
Ex. 30:25
It was used to anoint or empower priests and kings.

“And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and sanctify them, that they may
minister to Me as priests.” Ex. 30:30

“Then Zadok the priest took a horn of oil from the tabernacle and anointed
Solomon. And they blew the horn, and all the people said, “Long live King
Solomon.” 1 Kings 1:39

What actually happened when they were anointed?
Let’s look at the example of the prophet Samuel anointing David to be king


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“Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his
brothers and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward.”
1 Sam. 16:13
What happened? The Holy Spirit came upon him, giving him the power needed to
take on the role as king.
The oil was an outward sign of that spiritual empowerment. In simple terms
anointing means - POWER TO DO THE JOB.

OUR ANOINTING:
All Spirit filled believers are anointed today.

But you have an anointing from the Holy One. 1 John 2:20

This means when you received the power of the Holy Spirit, you were given -
POWER TO DO THE JOB.
What is our job?

And have made us kings and priests to our God and we shall reign on the earth.
Rev. 5:10

This ministry for every believer of being both a priest and a king is reconfirmed
by Peter.

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood... 1 Peter 2:9

Notice what it says, not just priests but royal or kingly priests.

YOUR MINISTRY
What is your job description as a priest and king?

Priest
The original ministry of a priest was given to Aaron.

“And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons and sanctify them that they may
minister to Me as priests” Ex. 30:30

Therefore we can see we are to minister to God but how do we do this?
We are told to, “offer up spiritual sacrifices” 1 Peter 2:5
What are these spiritual sacrifices?

Let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God … But do not forget to do
good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”
Heb. 13: 15-16

Therefore we are to continually to offer up praises to God and bless others.
In other words, love God and love your neighbor as yourself.

There has been much teaching and emphasis on the priestly ministry of the
church. However in many cases the kingly anointing has not been in evidence.


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King
The original kingly ministry was given to Saul. Saul did not operate in it
according to God’s perfect will but the empowerment was pure.

“You shall anoint him commander over my people, that he may save my
people from the hands of the Philistines for I have looked upon my people
because their cry has come to me. 1 Sam. 9:16

The original job description of the king was to release people and keep them
free from bondage of their enemy.

Priest & King
Both ministries were exhibited by our role model King Jesus.

How God anointed Jesus Christ of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with
power who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed of the
devil for God was with Him. Acts 10:38

Jesus commands us to be priests and kings as well.

“..He who believes in me the works that I do will he do also and greater works
than these will he do...” John 14:12

The Need
Today the majority of people are in bondage to the enemy, Satan.
• They are in the bondage of sin
• They are in captivity in their minds with emotional hurts.
• They are restricted because of sickness in their bodies.
• They are living in poverty or financial stress.

Their response “If there is a God up there ... Help us!”
Their cry has been heard by God.
What is His response? He has anointed - (power to do the job), His kings and
priests, to release people and keep them free.

A SPECIAL CHOSEN PERSON

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a special
people. 1 Peter 2:9

Many Christians forget or don’t understand what God has anointed them for
and regard themselves as “ordinary Christians”.
This is a contradiction in terms. How can you be a Christian and ordinary.
You will be ordinary if you don’t use what you have.
We need to understand what God has done. You are now empowered as a priest
and king.
You have the potential to be extra-ordinary.



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How Special?

“Assuredly I say to you among these born of women, there has not risen one
greater than John the Baptist, but he who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is
greater than he.” Matt. 11:11

John was regarded by Jesus as being greater than Moses, Abraham, Joshua,
David or any other Old Testament saint.
The least in the kingdom, Jesus said, are greater than John. That means if there
were one billion believers and you rated yourself as the least or last, you still
have an incredible opportunity.
From now, till you go to be with the Lord you have a potential to have a
greater ministry than John the Baptist who was the greatest of the great .
That’s very special.

WHY DID GOD CHOOSE YOU?
You are a chosen generation. God chose you for this role.
How did God choose King David? When Samuel was to anoint a new King he
went to David’s house. Usually the oldest son (Eliab) received the highest
blessing, however this did not happen.

When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, "Surely this is
the Lord's anointed!"
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I
have rejected him. The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them. People
judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."
1 Sam 16:6-7 NLT

Eliab looked the part and he appeared to be “King” material. After all he was
the oldest son and had a strong commanding presence. Nevertheless, he was
discarded.
On the other hand, what was it that God saw in David?
We are told that David had a heart after God. This means David had a heart that
chased after God. We find this out later in David’s life. Within him, despite all
the sin and failure, was a heart that said, “I know I fail, I know I let you down,
but Lord you and I both know, that deep down I want to do your will.”
God does not choose the best looking or those born into a position of wealth or
power but those who want to do his will … despite their failings.
Even though you may have been weak, and let Him down, you know deep
within you there is a cry to do the Lord’s will. Like David, you have a heart after
God.

You’re Special
Have you ever thought of the care taken, when God chose his priests and kings in
the Old Testament. He chose men that he knew once empowered by Him could
achieve His purposes.
God looked across the earth and He chose you to be both His priest and king.

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a special
people. 1 Peter 2:9


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YOUR NEW ROLE AND JOB DESCRIPTION
When the kingly anointing came upon Saul, the Bible tells us,

At that time the Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will
prophesy with them. You will be changed into a different person. After these
signs take place, do what must be done, for God is with you. 1 Sam 10:6-7 NLT

The Spirit of the Lord changed and enabled Saul to be a different person with
supernatural empowerment.
The priestly and kingly anointing transforms you into another person - a new
creature with incredible potential.

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will
do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.
John 14:12

Let’s put our spiritual eyes on and see what has happened to us, as most of us
missed out on the reality of what happened in the spiritual realm at our ordination
and coronation.

Wordly Example
To help enable us to grasp the enormity and importance of what was done, let’s
look at the natural situation.
You may also be aware of all the pomp and ceremony that goes on when a king
or queen is crowned at their coronation.
You may be aware of a similar situation when a pope or archbishop is ordained
in the church.
Imagine if one person was given the double honor of both king and spiritual
head over a nation of people. What attention and publicity it would bring.
Imagine now the change in that person’s life as they took on the responsibility
for that dual role.

Godly Example
Just imagine how this is a picture of what happens in the spiritual realm.
You’ve been chosen and called to enter God’s throne room. However, you stand
outside in trepidation looking in at all the purity, holiness and absolute beauty of
what is inside.
You want to go in but you dare not enter. When you look at yourself, you see
filth, and that you are not worthy to put a foot in the door.
Jesus walks to the door and gives you a gift of priestly garments. It’s a garment
of salvation. He tells you that now, like the high priest, you can enter boldly into
His Father’s very presence in the Holy of Holies, anytime, for a talk with Him.
You are humbled by this gift He has offered but you gratefully and thankfully
accept it and stand before Him.
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, He now places a crown on
your head, a mantle over your shoulders and a sceptre in your hand. He tells you
now that you have a kingly authority, the power to overcome all the works of the
enemy.
Whether you realized it or not you were given this double anointing;


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• The gift to be able to walk into His very presence and receive
instructions and encouragement from Him.
• The power of the Holy Spirit to set others free

Down to Earth
An archbishop or king does not walk around in their ordination or coronation
robes or wear their crowns all the time. They are mere symbols of the authority
and power they wield. In everyday life they are more down to earth.
When you emerge from your throne room experience, you are dressed in your
everyday clothes. However the difference is not external, it’s internal. There is a
renewal of your mind, because you now realize the enormous privilege, honor
and empowerment to given to you.
You are a new person with a new job description.
No wonder Peter said,

But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a
holy nation, God's very own possession. As a result, you can show others the
goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
1 Peter 2:9 NLT

Knowing all the potential power that was available to all believers it is
understandable why Paul said to Timothy, “Stir up, the gift of God which is in
you,” and why the Lord is now saying the same to you.

‘Thanks’ … But No Thanks
Can you imagine a newly appointed archbishop or crowned king going back to
their former way of living?
As God’s specially chosen priests and kings, we cannot turn our backs on the
greatest calling the Lord can offer anyone on the earth.
We have some believers who do turn their backs on this ministry because they
feel unworthy of such honor and consider themselves humble servants.
Have you considered how Jesus feels when He sees this?
God’s plan was to restore you so that you could walk into His presence without
shame or guilt and give you the power to help others. This involved Jesus’ total
humiliation, an horrific death and to top it off He received the punishment due to
us.
Can you imagine saving up, sacrificing and spending your last cent on a
present for someone? You excitedly hand them the gift, but they push it back in
your face and say they aren’t good enough to receive it. How would you feel?
That’s how Jesus

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