The degree to which we are able to make advances in spiritual warfare, is often measured by our ability to perceive things in the spirit as we pray. It is not all the time that we are in the spirit, that we are able to perceive things. But spiritual things are often perceived, while we are in the spirit.
The Holy Spirit is responsible for bringing the truth to us, while we are in the spirit. Even though we can still perceive spiritual truths, without the help of the Holy Spirit; because our spirit man is redeemed. Our spirit man has to be able to perceive things, without necessarily having to rely on the Holy Spirit. That is one of the benefits of being born of the Spirit of God.
RECOGNIZE THE VOICE SPEAKING TO OR WITH YOU
We therefore need to be able to differentiate, the voice of our inner man from that of the Holy Spirit, and the voice of the enemy. This is very important in spiritual warfare. We must be able to differentiate, what comes to us directly from God, from what comes from our redeemed spirit man. Just as the Holy Spirit has a voice, the spirit man inside us does has a voice also.
But the enemy has the ability to speak to us as well. Our spirit man must be trained, to recognize his voice also. He is always full of deceptions and lies. We must be able to perceive his deceptions and lies, so that we can deal with them immediately. Our spirit man must be trained to recognize and know, what comes from the Devil. This is very important in spiritual warfare.
Jesus once said:
“But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.”
Matthew 24:43 NIV
The enemy that we do confront in spiritual warfare, is like a thief that breaks into a house. Our spirit man is the house that he seeks to break into. He is lurking at every corner, looking for an opportunity to strike at you. We must not entertain his voice in our heart. We must give him no breathing space at all. That is why we must train our spirit man, to be vigilant in the warfare against him.
PERCEPTION AND THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit is never there to do the spiritual warfare for us. He is there to help and support us as we pray.
There are those who think that, the Holy Spirit is supposed to be praying for them. Such ignorance causes them to miss out of the wonderful opportunities, available to them through prayer and intercession. They normally will just fold their arms, waiting on the Holy Spirit to lead them before they pray.
The problem with this is that, nothing actually happens until we initiate a move through prayer. We act by faith as we move and progress in spiritual warfare.
The Holy Spirit will never involve Himself into situations, that He has not been invited to participate in. He is like a gentleman, who will never go to where He is not needed. Just as faith moves God to act on our behalf, our faith in prayer is what makes the Holy Spirit to act on our behalf also.
The most effective way to get Him involved with us, is by praying in the spirit. Every time we do that, He comes along to help us, strengthening us in the inner man as we pray.
The purpose of the Holy Spirit living in the innermost being of our spirit man, among other things is to help us, to guide us and to counsel us as we pray.
It is our spirit man, who is born of the Spirit of God, that does has the task of praying and interceding. And because we are born of God’s Spirit, our spirit man knows exactly, what to pray for and how to pray.
Jesus said:
“But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you.”
John 14:26 AMPC
The Holy Spirit is clearly mentioned here as our Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener and Standby. These are what He does. He is referred to here as our Intercessor mainly because, He plays that role for us in the spirit world, which is invincible to us in our natural world.
As an Intercessor His job is to reveal to us, what is going on in the spirit realm. He is like our go in between, who brings the spiritual truths that affects us, as we are praying into the understanding of our spirit man.
In other words He reveals the will of God concerning, what we are praying about to us (Romans 8:27). He knows the will of God for us in all situations, and reveals those purposes of God that are hidden to us.
The Holy Spirit knows exactly, what the enemy is planning and doing against us in the spirit realm. His job is to expose the tactics of the enemy to us, so that we can do something about it. He expects us to always do something about everything, that He reveals to us.
Without Him playing this role for us, we cannot be effective in prayer. He is the only personality of the Triune God, who has direct access into the heavens, as well as into our lives through our spirit man. We are the ones who do have to exercise our spiritual authority, in prayer and intercession so as to enforce the will of God.
But it is easier for us to understand and perceive the voice of our spirit man, than it is for us to pick up the voice of the Holy Spirit as we pray. The Bible says:
“For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.”
1 Corinthians 2:11 NIV
Our spirit man knows us better, just as the Holy Spirit knows the things of God better. Our spirit man knows and can perceive spiritual things, and bring them to our understanding, because his wisdom supersedes any other (Proverbs 18:14). Our mind or soul cannot match the wisdom that emanates from our redeemed spirit man.
The Holy Spirit often reveals spiritual truths to our spirit, so that the spirit man can convey them to us in perceiving them. It is therefore not all the time that the Holy Spirit speaks to us directly.
PERCEIVING THE INWARD WITNESS
During prayer and intercession we are being led from the inward witness, right from under our belly to perceive spiritual things. The Holy Spirit testifies to us about, what belongs to us in God’s kingdom as we are praying. But we are the ones who will have to take those things by faith.
Our lives as Christians is directed from our inward witness in the spirit man. That’s why we need to learn how to listen to him. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to train us, in listening to the inward witness of our spirit man as we pray.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE SPIRIT MAN
The paradox of all of these is that, it takes a long time for our spiritual development to get to this level. It takes a longer time for our spirit man, to become sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit, than it takes to become sensitive to that of the spirit man inside us.
This is due to the nature of sin and death in us (Romans 8:2-3), with which we often struggle with, as the spirit man learns to listen to the Holy Spirit. Our head often struggles with our spirit man, because of this nature in us. The longer it takes us to renew our mind with God’s word, the longer it will take to train our spirit man. This is never easy.
Jesus as our example spent thirty years of His life on earth in preparing for His ministry. Spiritual development is never easy. There will always be bumps on the road to our spiritual maturity; but God is patient and full of long suffering. He will always work with us and work in us, to bring us into that stage of spiritual maturity. The purpose is for us to be able to perceive His way in our lives, without the help of the Holy Spirit.
God will always work in us, to develop our spirit man, to the level of spiritual maturity that is required of us to do His work. Prayer and intercession is what gets us there. We bloom and glow inside the closet of prayer and intercession. Our spirit man gets empowered as this takes place.
Paul once prayed for the Galatians, as they faced bumps on their path way to spiritual maturity. He told them:
“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,”
Galatians 4:19 KJV
Travailing in spiritual birth again is something, that can only be done in the spirit. We need to note here that, Paul was writing to a body of believers who were born again, but who had been deceived by the enemy. He was praying for them, and he was comparing praying and interceding for them here, with the travailing of a woman in child bearing labor pain.
The goal here in praying and interceding for the Galatians’ spiritual development, is described by Paul as “until Christ be formed in you.”
This ought to be our spiritual goal also, in learning to perceive the leadings of God inside our spirit man. It may take a long time and a lot of travailing in prayer; but we will all get there, as long as we are ready to learn from the Holy Spirit.
Great spiritual works in the kingdom of God, blooms and glows into glory from the secret closet of prayer and intercession. Keep praying and interceding in the spirit. God is on your side.
