READ: Matthew 13:24-30
“And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly.” – John 13:27
Judas received the gift of God and became anointed to work for God. He was one of the twelve disciples sent out to heal, teach and freely minister the power of God. Jesus Himself did not strike out Judas because he was one of His anointed apostles and disciples. He warned him several times but Judas took no heed. Judas walked away from the presence of the Holy Spirit. Judas was destroyed when he went away from the presence of Jesus.
In the parable of the wheat and tares, Jesus revealed a startling truth. He said that the tares and the wheat (those with the presence of God and those without the presence of God) were remarkably similar. If you ever see a picture of wheat and tares you will understand why Jesus warned not to touch the wheat. They are so similar that you will destroy a large portion of wheat in your bid to root out the tares.
The presence of God is the goodness of God, and the presence of His person with you. Having a gift and being able to work for God is not the same as having the presence of God with you.
Those who carry the presence of God and those who do not, are very similar in their appearance. It is often not easy to tell that the presence of God has departed from a minister. Perhaps the only way you may be able to see this difference is in the fruit. Tares or weeds do not bear fruit. Weeds do not bear fruit!
The sign of the Holy Spirit’s presence in the early church was the winning of souls and bearing witness of Jesus Christ. Today, the reaping in of dollars, pounds and euros, rather than the reaping of souls, are used as markers of success. We do not need markers of success. We need markers of the presence of the Holy Spirit!