God is God, Don’t Take Him as Just A Friend – Pastor Iruofagha James
With the present state of Christianity in Nigeria, Christians have been called upon to grow in God and develop more hunger for Him through His presence and power.
The call was made by the founding pastor and General Overseer of Glory Christian Ministries, Pastor Iruofagha James while speaking on, “Distinguishing Between the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit”.
He said, “when the Holy Spirit is upon you and you are filled with His presence, you will bear witness of the Lord Jesus Christ and speak the word.”
Pastor James admonished, “God is God, don’t just see Him as only a friend, provider and good God, see Him as your creator and unto whom you must give all account. Getting to know God as God becomes a more important challenge to Christians, because the more you grow in Him, the more knowledge of Him you have”.
“When Jesus promised to send a Comforter, He was assuring us of a Personality that will come to be our friend, companion, fortress and encouragement that will always be there for us”, he pointed out.
Laying emphasis on the chief responsibility of the Holy Spirit, James said, “the Holy Spirit responsibility is to announce, make known and glorify Jesus. His purpose is to rub the very nature character of God into and on us. He comes to eliminate anything that is not of God”.
Speaking further, he said, “the presence of God is the source of the Holy Spirit and the power of God is the product of the source”.
“His presence is basically for the fellowship, while His power is for the work. His presence convicts man of sin, His power leads the person to Christ and transforms him to God while His presence and power changes the physical man”, he explained.
Citing Bible examples, he said, “You can have the presence of God but not have His power or have the power without the presence. That someone received the miracle of God does not mean the person is transformed. But, it is necessary to have both His presence and His power in the same measure of our lives”, he emphasized.
Iruofagha James appealed to parents to always teach their children about God, who He is, why He is important and the responsibility to God.
