[John 4:19-24 KJV] “The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. [20] Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. [21] Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. [22] Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. [23] But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. [24] God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth”.
Many of us know the popular story of Jesus Christ and the woman of Samaria, of whom He asked for water by the well of Jacob, while His disciples went to buy food. We know that in the ensuing dialogue, the Lord stated clearly that God is a spirit, and that they that worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth. The Lord was also emphatic that the time is coming, and now is, that a man needs not go into a mountain to find God nor to a temple to see God. The Lord taught the woman that in this hour and time, men and women everywhere can both worship and see God wherever they are. There are simple secrets to move God to manifest Himself to the us.
We want to explore three things:
What is manifestation?Why should God manifest Himself?How can we move God to manifest Himself to us?
[Matthew 17:1-4 KJV] “And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, [2] And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. [3] And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. [4] Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias”.
We have learnt that manifestation is making an abstract concept tangible. Many of us cannot see air but we believe it exists because we see the manifestations of air. There is also air in a well ventilated room; we have no doubt of its existence when the air begins to move and push things down. When there is an hurricane in any place, none of us have doubts of its existence; you know why? We see the evidence of its manifestation. We see the debris, the wreckage, and the disaster.
I pray that as you go to work and relate with people the tangible manifestation of God in you will leave them with no doubt that God is real. I pray that you shall engage with these truths I am about to share and you will see the tangible manifestation of God in your life, so that you can declare with boldness that you serve a living God and Jesus Christ is His son. In a world of hate and disrespect and aggression, we can declare this word boldly only when the hand of God can clearly be seen (See Romans 1:4, Acts 4:29-31)
Also, seeing the manifestations of the Spirit will cause the faith of our hearers not to dwell in the wisdom of men but in the power of God (See 1 Corinthians 2:1-4).
Our hearers will not just belive because they heard but because they also saw. The men of Samaria said, “we believe not because of what you said but because we have also seen” (John 4:39).
[John 4:47-50 KJV] “When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judaea into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, and heal his son: for he was at the point of death. [48] Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe. [49] The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die. [50] Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way”.
The three simple secrets to moving God to manifest, the three simple things that brings about great move of God among any people, as are taught in John 14:12-15, 21 are an atmosphere of faith, prayer, and love;
1. God will not move except in an atmosphere of faith;
In the atmosphere of faith, miracles takes place. We know that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word. We can see the great move and manifestation of God when we testify of His goodness both to ourselves and to the nations (See Matthew 28:20, Mark 16:14-20).
Faith moves God! The Bible says that, “if any man believes in me, the works I do shall he do, and even greater works”. The proof of faith in a man is to do what you see him doing. Jesus did what He saw the Father doing. Show me your works and I will show you your faith. I can also tell what people believe by watching what they do. What you do shows exactly what you believe.
2. God will not move or manifest, except in an atmosphere of prayer;
In Acts 4:29-37, we see how the early church gathered to pray that the Lord should stretch forth His hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of His child, Jesus. They gathered to pray after they were threatened. And the Bible tells us in Acts 4:29-31 that after, “they had prayed, the place shook and they were filled with the Holy Ghost”. Prayer moves the hand of God to manifestations.
3. God will not move or manifest, except in an atmosphere of love and obedience;
Without holiness or separation, no man can see God. If you love God, He will love you and come and manifest Himself to you. Love moves God. In Pslam 63, David said, “Early will I seek you, in a dry and thirsty land, because my soul longs and thirst after you.” He wrote this psalm from the wilderness of Judah. If only we hunger and thirst and seek after God, we will find Him.
I have no doubt that you shall see God. I know there shall be a great move in your life and it will cause generations to come to celebrate you. Be blessed!
I love you;
Noah Simpe Bediako