David Cwir – Reconciling the Present and Future Reality of the Kingdom of God

One of the key theological concepts related to the Kingdom of God is the "already but not yet" tension, which refers to the paradox that the Kingdom is both present ("already") and yet to be fully realized ("not yet"). This raises the question: "How can something be both present and future at the same time?" Resolving this mystery is crucial for understanding Jesus' teachings, life in the Spirit, and the New Testament as a whole. In this second session, we explore how to reconcile the Kingdom of God as both present and future by delving into what Jesus refers to as "The Mystery of the Kingdom."

Note: This is part one from the "Life in the Spirit Equip Class” that was offered at Bethel Church in Redding, California.

David Cwir – What is the Kingdom of God?

Understanding the Kingdom of God is essential for grasping the teachings and ministry of Jesus (Mark 1:14-15; Matthew 4:23; Luke 4:43). Scripture indicates that the Kingdom of God is connected to Jewish end-time expectations and must be interpreted within the context of Jewish Messianic hopes. In this first session, we explore the end-time expectations that had developed in Judaism before the time of John the Baptist and Jesus to provide a framework for understanding how the New Testament concept of the Kingdom of God fits into these expectations.

Note: This is part one from the "Life in the Spirit Equip Class” that was offered at Bethel Church in Redding, California.

David Cwir - The Life of the Age to Come - The Age of the Kingdom has Dawned

Understanding the Kingdom of God is absolutely crucial for understanding the teaching and ministry of Jesus (Mark 1:14-15; Matthew 4:23; Luke 4:43). Therefore, it is imperative for us to understand what the Kingdom of God means. Scripture tells us that Kingdom of God is in some way related to Jewish end time expectations and must be understood in terms of Jewish Messianic hopes. Check out this audio message if you would like to learn about the end time expectations that had arisen in Judaism before the time of John the Baptist and Jesus to provide a framework into which the New Testament concept of the Kingdom of God fits in. If you would like to learn more about the Kingdom of God, you can download this week’s audio message at the following link.

David Cwir - Ministering in the Power of the Holy Spirit

People can argue with words, but they can’t argue with an encounter! This is why Paul reminds us throughout Scripture that the message of the gospel is truth accompanied by experienced reality, “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5; see also 1 Cor 4:19-20; 1 Thess 1:4-5, Rom 15:17-19). Although the Gospel came in word (proclaimed truth), it did not come in word alone: God verified its truthfulness by a display of His power through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. You see this throughout Scripture as Paul’s Spirit-empowered word was regularly accompanied by Spirit-empowered miracles as well (e.g., Romans 15:18-19). It is this difference between Paul and us that is so radical that it explains a lot about our present condition in the West. We need to get back to Biblical Christianity and live like Jesus called us to live by the power of the Holy Spirit! If you would like to learn more about the importance on the ministry of the Holy Spirit, then check out this week’ message at the following link:

David Cwir - Spirit Outreach with Wind, Fire, & Wine (Acts 2)

The message of the gospel is truth accompanied by experienced reality (as in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5). Although it came in word (proclaimed truth), it did not come in word alone: God verified its truthfulness by a display of His power through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Paul’s Spirit-empowered word was regularly accompanied by Spirit-empowered miracles as well (Romans 15:18-19). Galatians 3:1-5 shows that Paul’s converts’ own experience of the Spirit was also accompanied by experiential phenomena to which Paul can appeal as evidence of their having become the children of God by faith. It is this difference between Paul and us that is so radical that it explains a lot about our present condition in the West. We need to get back to Biblical Christianity and live like Jesus called us to live by the Holy Spirit!

*Please note that if you choose to listen to the message, it sometimes takes several seconds to start hearing the audio after you click on the play button. To download the file to your computer, simply click where it says "download" at the bottom right hand corner of the audio file.

David Cwir - A Biblical Basis for Healing

Is it God’s will to heal the sick? Is the ministry of healing for all believers? If so, how do we heal the sick? In the Gospels, Jesus’ pattern was to preach that “the Kingdom of God has come near” and then demonstrate the reality of the Kingdom by ministering healing. In fact, the ministry of healing is such an important aspect of the gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus mandated that all of His disciples follow His example by healing the sick (Matthew 10:8). As followers of Christ, we need to know and understand our authority in Christ to heal the sick so that we can fully proclaim the gospel of Christ (Romans 15:19). Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about the Scriptural basis of divine healing and Scriptural principles about how to heal the sick.

David Cwir - The Sword of The Spirit (Prayer Keys from Paul the Apostle)

All three times the devil tempted Jesus, He used the shield of faith to extinguish the temptation and fought back with the sword of the Spirit (the word of God). If Jesus who was The Word had to take His stand on “It is Written…” how much more do we need to stand on “It is written…”? Check out this audio message to learn crucial keys from the prayers of Paul and the life of Christ on how to exercise the power and authority that Jesus bestowed upon all believers in a practical and effective way.

David Cwir - Authority and the Prayer of Command (Mark 11.22-24)

“How did Jesus pray?” In Scripture, Jesus’ prayers were often short, in the imperative tense of the verb (a command). This was especially the case when He was confronting the enemy and demonstrating the Kingdom of God (e.g., healing the sick). Jesus delegated His power and authority over the devil to all believers on the earth (Luke 10:19). But just knowing this isn't enough. It's knowledge acted upon that brings results! So, how do we exercise our authority in Christ? In the same way Jesus did: through the prayer of command in His Name (Mark 11:23). Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about the authority of the believer and a Scriptural basis for the importance and effectiveness of the prayer of command

David Cwir - The Prayer of Forgiveness (Mark 11.25, Mt. 6. 9-15, Lk. 11.4)

Ever wonder why Jesus tells us that Forgiveness is an important part of prayer? Jesus defines righteousness differently in the New Covenant: Everything we have received is a gift from God, and we must freely give unto others that which we have received. God accepts, forgives, secures, and loves us unconditionally, and we are now free to love people who wronged us the way God does; with unconditional forgiveness, kindness, and mercy. Ultimately, forgiveness is what lies at the heart of the gospel: Jesus dying for our sins is God's gracious heart of forgiveness. šGod granted us unlimited forgiveness and we are called to do the same “forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Check out this audio message if you are interested in learning about the importance of forgiveness in the context of Jesus’ teachings on prayer.

David Cwir - Ask, Seek, Knock (Luke 11:1-13)

In one of His most extensive teachings on prayer, Jesus tells us that there are three crucial dimensions of prayer that are essential for getting answers. Check out this audio message to learn more about each of these three dimensions, and a Biblical basis for them that will revolutionize your prayer life if you implement them. You can hear the message by clicking the following link [This message was spoken at Oak Bluff Bible Church’s annual Camp Retreat at Camp Cedarwood and was part of a series called “Prayer Keys from the Teachings of Jesus”]

David Cwir - Who Are We? A Spirit-Driven People

What would church look like if we built the church to attract The Lord, instead of just trying to attract people? This audio teaching addresses what it means to be a community of people who are called to be a resting place for The Lord. Check out this message if you are interested in learning more about some of the revival history from the 1960’s to the present time and key values and goals that contribute to a “Spirit-Driven Life." You can listen or download the message on the player below or from our podcast on iTunes at this link: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/life-in-the-spirit/id1378127274

David Cwir – A Brief Historical Overview of Spirit Movements/Revivals

A big part of knowing who we are is to know where we have come from. We can learn a lot by looking at what God has done through past Spirit Movements/Revivals that led up to where we are today. This message provides a brief historical overview going back to the Jesus Movement in the 1960’s and 70’s that birthed the contemporary worship music and eventually formed into the Vineyard/Third Wave movement in the 80’s and 90’s. This overview is intended to provide a foundation to shed light on what the Spirit emphasized in these past movements to help understand where we are today corporately as a global church. Check out this audio teaching if you are interested in learning more about significant movements, renewals, and revivalists (such as Lonnie Frisbee and John Wimber) that God used to impact the global church in significant ways. You can listen or download the message on the player below or from our podcast on iTunes at this link: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/life-in-the-spirit/id1378127274

David Cwir - How Do We Humble Ourselves?

What is humility and what does it look like? Looks can be deceiving:  Sometimes pride can look like humility, and humility can look like pride. The key difference is whether your trust and confidence is in yourself or in the Lord. Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about the absolute importance of humility, what it is from a scriptural perspective, and how we humble ourselves according to the Bible. If you are interested, you can listen to or download the audio message from the following link:

David Cwir - God Offends the Mind to Reveal the Heart

From the moment Jesus began His work on earth, His ministry was highly offensive to people. His method and message was so offensive that it ultimately led to His death on a cross. Was the use of offense intentional on His part? This audio teaching provides Scriptural examples and illustrations from the ministry of Jesus to show how He intentionally used offense as a strategy to reveal people’s hearts. Check out this message if you are interested in learning more about why Jesus uses offense and how we can learn from it in order to stay on the path of life. You can listen or download the teaching on the player below or from our podcast on iTunes at this link: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/life-in-the-spirit/id1378127274

David Cwir - Humility: The Key to Understanding Truth

Seeking to be right only leads to self-righteousness. Seeking to be humble results in a knowledge of the truth. Jesus reveals truth to the humble of heart, and therefore, the only way to be “right” is through humility. As illustrated by the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23), Jesus used parables and hid truth about the Kingdom in them so that people with prideful (hard) hearts couldn’t receive the truth, but that those with humble soft hearts could. Why did He do this? Because God knew that the prideful would reject the truth about the Kingdom and receive a more severe judgment as a result (Matthew 11:20-24; Luke 12:47-48). In other words, it’s God’s mercy to use parables so that the prideful would not be held accountable for rejecting the truth contained within them. Jesus hid truth in mysteries so that only the humble of heart were able to hear and understand the truth and they would multiply it. Check out this week’s message if you would like to learn more about why Jesus used parables and how Humility is a prerequisite for understanding truth.

David Cwir - What is Humility?

Truth is a Person. Our faith is not mental assent to a set of propositions, it is relationship with God. Jesus’ own disciples did not have perfect theology by any means, but they were humble enough to receive Him even though He came in a way that violated their expectations. This shows that Jesus did not base His relationship off of whether people were right or wrong, but rather, whether they were humble of heart. The problem with seeking to be "right" is that it results in self-righteousness, and scripture says that “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5, James 4:6). Humility is a posture of heart and it is a crucial virtue if we are to have a living relationship with Christ. Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about the absolute importance of humility, what it looks like according to Scripture, and how crucial it is in our walk with God:

David Cwir - The Church, The Spirit, and The Kingdom

Throughout the Bible and church history, the visible dynamic work of the Spirit has frequently manifested itself in drawing people to Christ and into His church. The Spirit is an experienced Kingdom reality who serves both as evidence that the future Kingdom is already at hand and as the guarantee of its final consummation. A genuine recapturing of the dynamic life of the Spirit will result in building the church and in more effective evangelism by showing people that His Kingdom is present here and now. Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about the essential role that the Spirit played in Jesus ministry and message about the Kingdom, and how we are to continue Christ’s ministry by the power of the Spirit.

David Cwir - Expanding the Kingdom as the Body of Christ

Jesus’ primary ministry was to preach and demonstrate the Kingdom of God. Scripture tells us that one of the purposes of the church is to function as the Body of Christ, acting out the present-day ministry of Jesus. In other words, we are now Christ’s Body with diverse functions and gifts that all work together to expand God’s Kingdom. Check out this audio message if you would like to learn more about how we are all empowered by the Spirit to be “Jesus’ hands and feet” to the church and to the world, and how we all have a part to play to expand His Kingdom.

David Cwir - Living Life According to the Spirit

Scripture is clear that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. However, it is also clear that we are to seek and pursue righteousness as New Covenant believers (e.g., Matthew 6:33; 1 Timothy 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:22) . The question becomes: if we are no longer under law, how do we seek righteousness and develop Christ-like character without getting into works of the law? The answer: by walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:18). Check out this audio message if you would like learn more about life in the Spirit:

David Cwir - This One Thing is Needed: Intimacy with God

Jesus exhorts us all to be faithful during the time of His delay. The parable of the wise and foolish virgins in Matthew 25:1-13 emphasizes the need to stay connected with Holy Spirit to cultivate intimacy with Jesus. In other words, Jesus directly connected preparation for the end times to cultivating intimacy with God! Through this parable, Jesus taught that it is foolish to neglect our intimacy with God during these times and that it is wise to cultivate it. We must keep our “lamps” filled with the oil of the Spirit! Check out this audio message if you would like to hear more about the importance of cultivating intimacy with God along with some practical keys in how to do so.