The river of power

Dr. D. K. Olukoya

This week, we are considering a topic entitled, “The River of power.”  Our first working text is from the book of Ezekiel 47: 1 – 6: “Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar. Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and behold, there ran out waters on the right side. And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits. And he brought me through the waters. The waters were to the ankles. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins. Afterward he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over. And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river.”

What a wonderful scripture! Ezekiel’s movement from the dry land into the waters of the glorious river symbolizes movement from our old ways of life into a new one controlled by the Holy Spirit. The contact with the Holy Spirit is always a wonderful experience no matter how brief. It should be noted how the angel of God measured a thousand cubits of water in four different occasions. This could be likened to the four classes of relationships believers generally maintain with the Holy Spirit. As you read, you would discover where you belong. 

1.     We have the ankle-deep believers. Unfortunately, this is the group where many Christians belong. People in this class make no further effort to increase their relationships with the Holy Spirit beyond this level. But just as it is impossible to be serious in a river that is ankle deep, it is impossible too to have a meaningful relationship with God if one stops at this stage. Being baptized with the Holy Spirit is just the starting point in a meaningful Christian race. The plan of God is for Christians to have the maximum of everything. Not going beyond this stage can only make a believer to get just the minimum.

2.     We have the knee-deep Christians. These are people who, after having received the Holy Spirit baptism, take an additional step forward in their Christian race. This could be just a slight improvement in their Bible reading or receiving the favour of the gift of prophecy.

3.     The loins-deep believers. These are those who in one way or the other have started to take the Holy Spirit as their partner. They discuss and have a personal relationship with Him; but because the water has not reached their heart region, the Holy Spirit is treated with levity at times, depending on the situation they find themselves. God does not expect us to stop at this stage where the control of the Holy Spirit over us is not total.

4.     The over-flowing group. This is where the Almighty wants us to be. Jesus says, “If any man thirst, 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. (But this he spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified. ” (John 7: 37 – 39).

The flowing river is the river of life and power of the Holy Spirit. Beloved, we need more than any other thing, the power and the Spirit of the living God to fill our lives.  Genesis 1: 1-3: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And  the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, let there be light: and there was light.”

Right from the beginning, man has been plagued with three distinct problems and up till now, man continues to face these problems. What are they?

1.     Many lives have no form: A life without a form is always characterized by confusion and lack of direction. The person finds it difficult to know where he or she is going. People in this category would be unable to pursue their God-ordained programmes. Satan rejoices over such lives for he knows that something good has been truncated. A dead person cannot pursue the programmes of his life. This is one main reason the enemy is turning people mad. Herod wanted to kill Jesus because he did not want Him to fulfill the programme of His life. If a person’s life lacks direction, then the enemies are at work, and only the inflow of the river can stop the evil tide.

2.     Many lives are empty: The second problem that the earth had was that it was void and desolate. Emptiers have dealt with many lives. Nothing good has ever been allowed to stay in such lives. If your life has been like this, you need to open up yourself for the river of power to come upon you.

3.     Many people live in darkness: The third problem of the earth which man has equally been suffering from is darkness. Darkness releases blindness upon souls and prevents them from seeing the handiwork of the enemy.

There was a certain brother who was a millionaire. But all of a sudden, his business collapsed and he became so poor that he started moving about in motorbikes whereas he had sixteen cars. The powers of darkness ensured that he did not do the right thing. They pushed him into visiting herbalists in search of solution to his problem. He never found solution until he turned to Jesus.

Going from one place to the other shows that a person is in darkness. If you discover that your life is characterized by aimlessness, there is a need for you to experience this power flow into your life. This is why the Bible calls the Holy Spirit wind. When the wind of the Holy Spirit flows into you, no power can trap it. It is possible to cage demonic powers and tell them to stay at a particular place and get tormented there. But the power of the Holy Spirit cannot be so treated.

When the wind of the Holy Ghost begins to blow into your life, you will become unchallengeable and all the stubborn trees of problem in your life will be blown down by the powers therein. That is why the Bible also calls the Holy Spirit water. Water revives, satisfies, refreshes, maintains and purifies. It also causes growth. In the same vein, the Holy Spirit does all these to you. The Holy Spirit is also described as oil because it is the source of energy. When two surfaces do not work together and you apply oil on them, it lubricates them and allows free movement. The Holy Spirit removes all frictions in our lives too.

These are the end times when the powers of the antichrist will manifest more than ever before therefore, you cannot afford to be a spiritual sluggard. You need the in-flow of fire and power upon your life to be able to withstand the wiles of the devil.

When the river of power flows into you, certain things will become afraid of you. The reason many of us are not really filled the way we should is because we have refused to submit ourselves completely to the Almighty. James 4: 7 says, “Submit yourselves  therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Without total submission to God, there would be no power for resistance. Once you begin to do that, the devil will start hiding from you because he will immediately recognise the power in you. The kind of tongues you speak probably carries no fire and that accounts for why demons are still able to press you down in your dreams and feed you with demonic meals. Your finances have probably been in shambles because of lack of power. You need the inflow of this river to move to higher mountains.

Beloved, the children of darkness are improving on their weapons everyday. They are doing even more research on destruction. It is not strange because the Bible has warned us that evil men shall wax stronger and stronger and that iniquity shall abound. If the children of darkness could be this serious in their quest to destroy, we as children of the Most High need to be more serious. We need to acquire the infilling of the Holy Spirit power to suppress these lesser powers as commanded in Ephesians 5: 18, which says, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess but be filled with the Spirit.” This is a command and not an advice. The word ‘filled’ here means, ‘be completely controlled by the Spirit.’ Be equipped with this power.

A certain man was a drunk before he got born again. After his conversion, he stopped drinking. However, one day as he was going to church he passed by the bar where he used to drink before his new birth. The smell of the drinks got into his nostrils and immediately, something in him began to agitate for the drink. He was almost going to yield but in that split second, he saw another shop where they sold soft drinks so he dashed in there and ordered for six bottles of soft drinks. He gulped the first five bottles in quick succession and his stomach was full. Even if he still wanted the alcohol, there would have been no room for it. It is the same thing if you get filled with God. The devil would have no room to operate. If you refuse the power of the Holy Spirit, the devil will come in and become the landlord of your life.

Victory comes when you allow the Holy Spirit to take full possession of your life. When He is in charge of the vehicle of your life, you need not be afraid even when the vehicle is giving some funny sound. Be filled with the Spirit. Give Him your all. If you have been playing games with the enemy, it is high time you packed away the cards and turned to the Holy Spirit fully. If you stay long in the camp of the enemy he will destroy you. The best thing is not to go there at all and be drunk with the power of God that cannot be insulted. Allow Him to dictate everything to you. Let Him dictate the dress you wear, the words you speak, the food you eat, the fellow you marry and all that you do.  When this happens people’s opinion will not matter to you any more for all you would be seeking is how to please Him.

Don’t you want your life to experience this much- needed change? Don’t you want to climb that mountain of power? Do you still want your household enemies to destroy your purpose on earth? It is high time you cried unto God and get filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.  Let the river of power flow into your life and you will never be the same again. Remember the Bible says that when you are in Christ, all things will become new. Get filled with this power and victory will be yours, in Jesus’ name.

PRAYER POINTS

1.     Oh Lord, touch me and anoint me to do extra for You, in Jesus’ name.

2.     (Lay your hand on your chest and pray like this:) Every dominion contrary to the will of God, be uprooted, in the name of Jesus.

3.     Oh Lord, let Your peace and glory be established in every area of my life, in Jesus’ name.

4.     I release myself from every failure before opportunity, in Jesus’ name.

5.     I release myself from anything that will quench the fire of God in my life, in Jesus’ name.

6.     Holy Spirit, fill me afresh, in Jesus’ name.

7.     (Lay your hand on your chest and pray like this:) The power that cannot be insulted by any evil power, fall on me now, in the name of Jesus.

 back