There are only two kingdoms of significance. One Kingdom is that of God. The coming of the Kingdom of God to the earth always results in the doing of God's will in the earth. Even the Lord Jesus submitted Himself to the will of God, for Jesus always dwells in the Kingdom of God, in the rest of God, and He Himself has become the Kingdom of God and the rest of God.

The other kingdom is that of self-will. Satan's kingdom includes himself and all others who refuse to relinquish their right to exercise their own will.

Here is the tremendous battle facing each believer who is filled with the Holy Spirit. Shall we consent to turn aside from our own will and permit Jesus Christ to do with us as He will? Or shall we insist on retaining our self-will?

We have spoken of the dwelling of the Spirit in us as being the "Pentecostal experience" and the coming of the Father and the Son to abide in us as being the "Tabernacles experience."

From my own experience of fifty-five years as a Christian I have experienced the conflict and the suffering that the Spirit employs in order to bring us into the rest of God. I do not claim to be totally there but I am pressing on the upward way.

Now I am seeing other stalwart, experienced believers who have come as far as Pentecost, and currently are in the throes of death to self-will. I pray for them as others have prayed for me that their faith does not fail. The issue is always one of faith. Christ dwells in our heart by faith.

Why is this? It is because God permits Satan to test us, Satan's goes right to the most strongly entrenched idol in our personality. We had no idea it was present in us. We may still not believe it.

When that idol is touched, the testing, the sifting begins.

Perhaps we have been prominent in the ministry. This makes the sifting even more difficult. Our religious pride enters in. To believe we could have been mistaken all these years is threatening to us.

We just can't let go of this idol we have been worshiping. It is too much a part of us. And so we struggle with God.

Israel means "He struggles with God."

Self? just such a test right now. Brother, Sister, let go! Let go! Let go!

I know I am speaking death to you. I have been there. But I know also that I am speaking life to you if you will just let that idol go! Don't try to reason it out. Don't expect anyone to understand. Just let that idol go! It may tear the heart out of you, but let it go!

You have to slay your own bull of consecration. God hands you the knife. You scream, "Not that!" Yes, it is that. Either you will run about, asking this one and that one if they think it is God talking to you. You will put out fleeces. You may become bitter at the tools God uses to get at the idols in your personality.

People cannot advise you correctly. They will seek to keep you comfortable. But you are wasting your time. If Abraham had asked Sarah if it really was the Lord who was asking for Isaac, Abraham would never have started up Mount Moriah.

You have to die, you know. Christ suffered and you have to enter His sufferings. If you do not, the new creation will never be formed in you. You will abide alone without fruitfulness.

We all have to endure hardness as good soldiers of Christ. We have to endure hardness! Do you think the cross is a pretty scene? Can you smell the death? Can you hear the screams? They are coming from your adamic nature, the only person who can keep you out of the Kingdom of God.

There are ten thousand reasons why you should hold on to this most carefully guarded part of your personality. None of these reasons are valid. You will scheme, plot, manipulate, and employ every device you can think of in order to keep your way with God and hold on to your idol. You will not be successful.

Listen to me. You will never lose anything by giving it to God, unless it is harmful to you. If God wants you to have it He will restore it in His time. You cannot ever lose anything of eternal value by trusting God.

To be continued.