Living A Supernatural Lifestyle

Living A Supernatural Lifestyle

Acts 8:5-8 “ Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.  Philip went down to the city of Samar′ia and proclaimed to them the Christ.  And the multitudes with one accord gave heed to what was said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs which he did.  For unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, crying with a loud voice, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.  So there was much joy in that city.”

I love the Book of Acts. I love several books of the Bible, but I am particularly drawn to Acts because of its supernatural aspect. After Pentecost the apostles moved forward into a supernatural lifestyle. Jesus had equipped them twice before to go out and spread the Gospel message using signs and wonders. However, now they had the Holy Spirit living inside of them and they were forever equipped for this mission. It became a part of them. For instance in Acts 3:1-10 “Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at that gate of the temple which is called Beautiful to ask alms of those who entered the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked for alms. And Peter directed his gaze at him, with John, and said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention upon them, expecting to receive something from them.  But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but I give you what I have; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up he stood and walked and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.”

Peter and John were going about their life. They didn't make a big show or say a ton of words. They were simply walking by someone in need, and they stopped and healed him. It was so simple and so easy. The reason it was so easy is because they knew the power they had living inside of them. They didn’t ask God to heal this man; they knew they had the Holy Spirit living inside of them, and they could call on this Holy Spirit to heal this man in the name of Jesus. They commanded the man to walk, and he did.

You and I have this same power living inside of us. The biggest difference is that they knew the power they had. Can you see what amazing things we could be doing if we knew beyond a shadow of a doubt the power we have living inside of us? They didn’t wonder if they could do it. They didn’t wonder if God would show up and heal this person. They didn’t wonder if it was God’s will to heal that person. They simply knew that the person needed healing and that they could provide that for Him. I wish we could all live this type of lifestyle. I wish we all knew the power we have living inside of us.

This is the reason I named this podcast Walk Boldly With Jesus. Peter and John were walking boldly with Jesus. We can too. Each one of us has the power of the Holy Spirit living inside of us. Yet, how often do we call upon that power? How often do we step forward confidently knowing we have that power? How often do we ask the Lord to do things that He has given us the ability to do?

I am not saying we shouldn’t ask the Lord for things; we definitely should. However, we should also step forward with confidence that He has equipped us to help ourselves as well. For instance, we definitely should pray to God for healing for our friends and family. However, we can also pray over them for healing as well. We can command the illness to leave, we can command bones to be healed and we can command spirits to leave. We are not powerless. We often say, “All we can do now is pray.” I get the sentiment and yet prayer is the most powerful thing we can do. It is not a last-ditch effort. It is the best way to see results. It is the best way to move mountains. There is so much power in prayer.

Imagine what this world would look like if we all started living the supernatural life we were meant to live. Imagine if we all realized the power we have living inside of us. The power of the one who raised Jesus from the dead lives inside of you and inside of me. (Romans 8:11) Can you even believe that? That is so crazy to me that God would give us the Holy Spirit. I am not just talking about the supernatural power to heal people, although I do wish we could all realize we had that power. There are so many people dying of illnesses, and if more of us were operating with the confidence that Peter and John had that the power of the Holy Spirit would work through us, we could save more people. Not just from their physical illness, but we could bring them back to Jesus, which is the real reason for the signs and wonders.

The Holy Spirit is our guide, he is our comforter, he is our counselor. The enemy wants us to think we are powerless to change anything in this world. However, this is not true. The power of prayer can change anything. I have seen so many miraculous answers to prayers. Answers that no one thought would come. Answers that seemed so far-fetched at the time. Our prayers are powerful. We all tend to think we are a slave to our wants and our desires. We say we have no willpower or that we are weak. This is a lie from the enemy. The power of the Holy Spirit living inside of you can help you overcome any perceived weaknesses. We just need to call upon it. We need to give the Holy Spirit permission to work in our lives. We need to understand what it means to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The apostle Paul did not have an easy life after he started to follow Jesus. He was persecuted and spent a lot of time in jail. He wasn’t scared though and he didn’t feel hopeless because he knew the power he had living inside of him. He knew nothing could touch him without the Father’s consent. He knew he had God by his side every step of the way. Do we know this? Are we confident in this? How would our life be different if we started realizing the power we had inside of us? How would our life be different if we started using that power?

I want to go back to our verse for today as I just realized I didn’t really talk about it too much.  The verse says, “ Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.  Philip went down to the city of Samar′ia and proclaimed to them the Christ.  And the multitudes with one accord gave heed to what was said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs which he did.  For unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, crying with a loud voice, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.  So there was much joy in that city.” This verse gives us another reason we were given the Holy Spirit. It wasn’t just to strengthen and guide us but it was also to do signs and wonders so that we can lead others to Jesus.

The verse also gives us some more examples of the things we are capable of when we walk in our identity as sons and daughters of Christ with the Holy Spirit. Philip proclaimed Christ to them, commanded unclean spirits to come out of many people, and healed many who were paralyzed or lame. The last line of the verse is one that shows us another benefit to living our supernatural lifestyle. It says, “There was so much joy in that city.” Joy is a gift from the Holy Spirit. Joy is so great because it is something you can have despite your circumstances. Happiness tends to be based on your current circumstances. However, joy is something you can have even when you are not particularly happy. It is a blessing and a gift from the Holy Spirit. Wouldn’t it be great to have a bit more joy in our lives?

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless each person listening to this episode. Lord, we ask that you help us to realize the power you have put inside of us. We ask that you show us how to step out in faith and live the supernatural lifestyle you want us to live. We ask for the courage and faith to live into the identity you have planned for us. We love you so much, Lord, and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. Mentoring is tonight at 8 EST if you want to sign up, Click Here! You still have time. I look forward to seeing you tonight on mentoring or meeting you here tomorrow for another episode. Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in December 2023 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group or about these words please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is “My children, do not hold tightly to the things that are not going to bring you closer to me. I know your needs. I know what you need to live from day to day. I know your wants and your desires. They are all part of my plan for your life. But do not hold them so tightly to your heart that you don't have enough room to hold me closely to your heart.”

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