WHO ARE YOU IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD?

1. VISITORS

You only come to God from time to time. You are a periodic and seasonal believer. You pray this week, and you don't pray for the next 2 days or 1 week; you only read the Bible on Church days…You are a visitor to God's presence and a stranger to Heaven! A visitor to God’s presence has no place with God and His power.

2. GATE-CRASHERS

A gate-crashing Christian is he/she who comes to God only when there is a problem he/she has to solve, or some enemies pursuing him/her. These are the people who wake up and read just Psalm 91; then they proceed. If they have to pray, they look for Psalms and other scriptures with promises and they begin to claim them. How do you know them? They argue that some things God expects from His children are "Old Testament" and they claim they are "New Testament" Christians, so things like paying tithes do not concern them.

They are the ones that continue to quote a man of God who have said something that suits them and their worldly tendencies. They can quote a man of God as many times as possible, but they cannot quote the word of God. The only scriptures they know and familiar with are the ones that promise good things and the ones they use to rain “Holy Ghost Fire” on their enemies.

If they are in a place where Heaven, Hell, Holiness, etc are being preached, watch out, they will change Church. They prefer where they will hear motivational messages and the likes. Is it not "funny" that they can claim the blessings in Deuteronomy 28:1-14, but when you tell them Deuteronomy 22:5 (about dressing), they say it is Old Testament...Imagine, the blessing is not Old Testament, but the instruction has become Old Testament?! They are Gate-crashers. These ones cannot be raptured or go to Heaven. Why? They only chose which scripture to obey.

3. BEGGERS

These people depend totally on others for their spiritual wellbeing. They are the people who will always say things like, "Pastor or Brother X did not ask after me." They can change a Church simply because according to them, their Pastor did not notice they were not in Church. They beg for prayers, and if possible, they will seek who will fast for them. They cannot spend time to pray, read the Bible, fast, meditate....NO! Rather, they carry prayer points around, seeking on whose neck to lay their burden, instead of laying their burdens at the feet of Jesus. They jump from one prayer house to another. They are easily deceived by signs and wonders and fall cheaply to false prophets/teachers and deceiving spirits. They are like the brother in Acts 9:33; he literally depended on the brethren for all he needed.

4. UNSTABLE BRETHREN

They are not visitors, nor are they gate-crashers, they are unstable brethren. Today, they are hot, tomorrow they are cold. They are lukewarm men and women…they don’t last in challenges (Revelation 3:16). Today they are strong, tomorrow they are weak. They preach well, but they do not live well what they preach. They can preach about why it is important to fast, but go and look at their lives, they eat too much and hardly do they fast. They can preach holiness but they do not live holiness. They are preachers of the word but are hardly doers of the same (James 1:22).

When they are in the midst of brethren, they are hot, when they are alone, they are cold. They are pretenders. When Holy men are around, they sound holy...When they are in the midst of other men, they sound just like them. The line of demarcation between them and the world is so so  so thin, that it almost does not exist. They are yet to be fully separated from the world and set apart for God. They want to serve God, but they do not want to leave the world - their ways of dressings, makeups, etc. They can spend 5 hours watching movies, but can hardly spend 30 minutes praying. They are unstable brethren with no real future.

"A double minded man is unstable in all his ways" (James 1:8)

It was this instability that implicated Reuben in destiny.

"Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel" (Genesis 49:4)

5. DWELLERS

These are the people whose hearts and ways please God; they are the ones God is looking for. They are not just worshippers, they are true worshippers, worshipping in Spirit and in truth (John 4:24).

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High” (Psalm 91:1).

These ones do not serve God based on conditions, but they love God and serve Him for who He is and His redemptive impact on humanity. They don’t go to God, questioning Him why He has not given them life partners, rather they believe in His word and timing. When they “fail”, they do not blame God or God’s work. In season and out of season, they remain believers. In the valley and on the mount tops, they are Christians. They pray, read the word, wait upon God, and live for God. Looking at them, you can tell they are of God. Coming close to tell, you know they have been with God. They do not talk anyone; they do not dress anyone; they do not live anyhow…in speaking, dressing, and in living, God is glorified in them. The Bible says, even “God is not ashamed to be called their God” (Hebrews 11:16).

QUESTIONS FOR YOU

Beloved, which category do you belong? How does Heaven see you at the moment: A Visitor, A Gate-crasher, A Beggar, An Unstable Christian, or A Dweller in His presence? How much time do you have for God among your schedules? How much time do you spend for God? How much time do you spend with God? What has quenched the fire of God’s word, prayers, evangelism, fellowship, and holiness in your life: movies, friends, women, men, relationship, business, school, environment, movies, TV, sports, or SIN? Can you meet God in this present condition? Can you make Heaven in this present state?  What is the state of your life? What is the state of your heart? Clean, defiled, lustful, worldly, vengeful, hatred, prostitution, cheat, malice??? God wants to bring revival in your life…MAY THAT FIRE OF REVIVAL BEGIN TO BURN IN YOU NOW IN JESUS’ NAME! PRAY!!

This message is courtesy of TreasuredHouse Int’l. Ministries (THIM). For spiritual help and counsel, you can write to: drwilliams4j@yahoo.com. Or, call/text: +234 803 574 4063.