THE SUPERNATURAL HABITS - PAUL & NUALA O'HIGGINS (the best e book reader .txt) 📗

the midst of this twenty-four hour day world it is vital that we not be sucked into the drivenness and spirit of the age, and stay in rhythm with the pace of God.
It is one thing to embrace technological advances but it is another matter that our whole rhythm of live is manipulated by the world system.
Milton described God as his “Great Taskmaster” but God is not a tyrannical taskmaster. He is a loving Father who wants us to be fulfilled and fruitful, as we discover a pace of life and production that is in perfect harmony with Him. God looks at us as friends and as children and not just as producers. Without rest we cannot reflect and we will become enveloped in the agenda and pace of the world.
The opposite of rest is stress. Stress and lack of rest are leading sources of ill health in people today. Supernaturally empowered believers combat not only the fact of stress but also the spirit of stress.
To fail to rest is to weaken ‘the goose that lays the golden egg’. In our greed for more production we often do not care sufficiently for ourselves. Neglect of the body and of rest may look spiritual but in fact is a violation of the laws of the kingdom of God.

The Pause Button
God revealed the necessity of rest in the first chapter of Genesis. He Himself rested – not because He was tired - but because He needed to enjoy and savor what was accomplished in the week.
In the wilderness before the codified Law of Sinai was given, God taught the Israelis the principle of rest and showed them that they would not receive any more by working on the Sabbath. It is not how much we work that makes us productive but how smart we work. As we pause we can be redirected by God and receive fresh ideas and direction.
The fact that we are not bound in a legalistic way to the Sabbath does not mean that the principle of rest, which is a universal law of life, should not be respected. All the most supernaturally empowered believers know how to take rest. Jesus asks us to come to Him and receive rest. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matt 11:28-30)

The Greater Sabbath Rest
There is a greater rest for the believer than simply the spiritual, mental and physical rest of a day free from labor. This is a rest which religious observance could never give the Jews or any other. Religion can never give the rest that Jesus brings.
“For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not speak later of another day. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for whoever enters God’s rest also ceases from his labors as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience.” (Hebrews 4:1-11) Here the scriptures speak of the rest of the believer who has discovered and entered the kingdom of God. We rest from our works and rest on God’s work.
We rest on the redemption provided for us by Jesus. We rest in the fact that (though we are not yet perfect) we are perfectly accepted and loved through the work of Jesus on the cross. Our sins are perfectly atoned for and we are reconciled to God. We rest in God’s redemption through the work of Jesus. We rest in His provision. We rest in His promises.
In addition, as we cease from our works, we loose ourselves from the false burden of self, of the world, of religion, and we take the ‘light’ yoke of the Lord. We receive work to do from Him for which we are perfectly suitable. Religion is a taskmaster and the agenda of the world gives no rest. But when we cease living for self and from self we find the agenda of the Lord and our works proceed from His instructions.
When we cease from our works we do not cease from work. We cease from empty work and dead work. We work not for our salvation but we work as saved people to bless the world around us with our work as God directs.
The key to the supernaturally empowered believer’s rest is to rest in faith on the finished work of the cross and then to take the yoke of the Lord upon himself.

The Vine & the Branches
The greatest metaphor for the special rest of the believer is Jesus’ allegory of the vine and the branches.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)
The little twig rests on the vine and as it rests there it drinks up the sap of the vine and passes it on to the developing fruit at the end of the branch. It is fruitful while resting and working from rest. It is bound to a certain task and, as it rests in its place and task, it produces beautiful fruit.
The most supernaturally empowered believers have rested from their own drivenness and the pressures of the world. They are available and useful in the work the Master gives them and are, therefore, the most effective disciples of all.


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To order more copies of

The Supernatural Habits of the Spirit Empowered Believer

write to:
Reconciliation Outreach
P.O. Box 2778
Stuart, FL 34995

Or e-mail: paulandnuala@bellsouth.net
Or by going on line to: www.reconciliationoutreach.net

You can help us with our ministry of good news by making sure that your local Christian bookstore carries this book and other books by Paul & Nuala O’Higgins.

Books by Paul & Nuala O’Higgins:
Christianity Without Religion
The Supernatural Habits of the Spirit Empowered Believer
Good News in Israel’s Feasts
New Testament Believers & The Law
The Four Great Covenants
In Israel Today With Yeshua
The Tree of Life
Have You Received The Holy Spirit?
Life Changing World Changing Prayer

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Paul and Nuala O’Higgins are natives of Ireland who reside in Stuart, Florida. They are the directors of Reconciliation Outreach – a ministry of teaching and interdenominational evangelism.
In full-time ministry together since 1977 they have ministered in over thirty nations. Nuala’s degree is in Education and Paul’s degrees are in Philosophy and Theology. Paul also holds a doctorate in Biblical Theology.
They are heralds of the love of God made available by the cross. Their call is to make known the treasures of God’s kingdom and equip believers to be more effective followers of Jesus.

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Text: Paul & Nuala O'Higgins
Publication Date: 01-18-2013

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