Author: Billy Conrad

July 9

Increase our faith. — Luke 17:5

Scripture reading: Romans 4

God has a design, a purpose, a rest of faith. We are saved by faith and kept by faith. Faith is substance; it is also evidence (Hebrews 11:1). God is! He is! And “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (v. 6). We are to testify, to bear witness to what we know. To know that we know is a wonderful position to be in. We are to be living words, epistles of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:3), known and read by all men.

We are living in the inheritance of faith because of the grace of God. We are saved for eternity by the operation of the Spirit, who brings forth life unto God. Heaven is brought to earth until God quickens all things into beauty, manifesting His power in living witnesses. God is in us for the world, so that the world may be blessed. We need power to lay hold of Omnipotence and to impart to others the Word of Life. This is a new epoch with new vision and new power. Christ in us is greater than we know. All things are possible if you dare to believe. The treasure is in earthen vessels so that Jesus may be glorified (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Let us go forth bringing glory to God. Faith is substance, a
mightiness of reality, a deposit of divine nature, and the creative God abiding with us. The moment you believe, you are clothed with a new power to lay hold of possibility and make it reality. The people said to Jesus, “Lord, give us this bread always” (John 6:34). Jesus said, “He who feeds on Me will live because of Me” (v. 57).

Have the faith of God. The man who comes into great association with God needs a heavenly measure. Faith is the greatest of all. We are saved by a new life, the Word of God, an association with the living Christ. A new creation continually takes us into new revelation.

Thought for today: There is what seems to be faith, an appearance of faith, but real faith believes God right to the end.

July 8

Will You not revive us again,that Your people may rejoice in You? — Psalm 85:6

Scripture reading: Psalm 85:7–86:13

Wherever Jesus went, multitudes followed Him, because He lived, moved, breathed, was swallowed up, clothed, and
filled by God. He was God; and as the Son of Man, the Spirit of God—the Spirit of creative holiness—rested upon Him. It is lovely to be holy. Jesus came to impart to us the Spirit of holiness.

We are only at the edge of things; the almighty plan for the
future is marvelous. God must do something to increase. We need a revival to revive all we touch within us and outside of us. We need a flood tide with a deluge behind it. Jesus left 120 men to turn the world upside down. The Spirit is upon us to change our situation. We must move on; we must let God increase in us for the deliverance of multitudes; and we must travail until souls are born and quickened into a new relationship with heaven. Jesus had divine authority with power, and He left it for us. We must preach truth, holiness, and purity “in the inward parts” (Psalm 51:6). Thirst for more of God.

Jesus treaded the winepress alone (Isaiah 63:3), despising the cross and the shame. He bore it all alone so that we might be “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4), sharers in the divine plan of holiness. That‘s revival—Jesus manifesting divine authority. He was without sin. People saw the Lamb of God in a new way. Hallelujah! Let us live in holiness, and revival will come down, and God will enable us to do the work to which we are appointed. All Jesus said came to pass: signs, wonders, mighty deeds. Only believe, and yield and yield, until all the vision is fulfilled.

Thought for today: Jesus was not only holy, but He also loved holiness.

July 7

May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. — 1 Peter 5:10

Scripture reading: 1 Peter 5

The God of all grace wants to do the following in us: first,
“perfect”; second, “establish”; third, “strengthen”; and
fourth, “settle.”

First is “perfect.” In the book of Hebrews, we read, “May the
God of peace…make you complete [“perfect,” KJV] in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ” (Hebrews 13:20–21). Keep in mind that when perfection is spoken of in the Word, it is always through a joining up with eternal things. Perfection is a working in us of the will of God.

Some of us would be fainthearted if we thought we had to be perfect in order to receive the blessing of God. We would ask ourselves, “How is it going to happen?” However, we find as we continue to follow God that the purpose of eternal life is an advancement, for we are saved by the blood. Our actions, our minds, are covered by the blood of Jesus, and as we yield and yield, we find ourselves in possession of another mind, even the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), which causes us to understand the perfection of His will.

Someone may be saying, “I can never be perfect! It is beyond my greatest thought.” You‘re right; it is! But as we press on, the Holy Spirit enlightens, and we enter in, as Paul said, according to the revelation of the Spirit (Ephesians 1:17–18). I am perfected as I launch out into God by faith, His blood covering my sin, His righteousness covering my unrighteousness, His perfection covering my imperfection. This is a very important fact: I am holy and perfect in Him.

Second is “establish.” You must be established in the fact that it is His life, not yours. You must have faith in His Word, faith in His life. You are supplanted by Another. You are disconnected from the earth. You are insulated by faith.

Third is “strengthen.” You are strengthened by the fact that
God is doing the business, not you. You are in the plan that God is working out.

Fourth is “settle.” What does it mean to be settled? It means knowing that I am in union with His will, that I am established in the knowledge of it, that day by day, I am strengthened. It is an eternal work of righteousness, until by the Spirit we are perfected. First is an enduring, then an establishing, a strengthening, and a settling. This happens according to our faith. It happens as we believe.

Now a closing word: “To Him be the glory and the dominion
forever and ever” (1 Peter 5:11). How can this verse be realized in my case? By living for His glory. There must be no withdrawal, no relinquishing, no looking back, but going on, on, on, for His glory now and forever. We must go on until, like Enoch, we walk with God and are not, for God has taken us (Genesis 5:24).

Thought for today: Unbelief is the great dethroning place; faith is the great rising place.

July 6

Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. — 1 Peter 5:6

Scripture reading: 1 Peter 5:1–11

Let‘s take a look at the fifth chapter of 1 Peter. “Humble
yourselves” (v. 6). Look at the Master at the Jordan River,
submitting Himself to the baptism of John, then again
submitting Himself to the cruel Cross. Truly, angels desire to look into these things (1 Peter 1:12), and all heaven is waiting for the man who will burn all the bridges behind him and allow God to begin a plan in righteousness, so full, so sublime, beyond all human thought, but according to the revelation of the Spirit.

“Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). He cares! We sometimes forget this. If we descend into the natural, all goes wrong, but when we trust Him and abide beneath His shadow, how blessed it is. Oh, many times I have experienced my helplessness and nothingness, and casting my care upon Him has proved that He cares.

Verse eight tells us to “be sober, be vigilant.” What does it
mean to be sober? It means to have a clear knowledge that we are powerless to manage, but also to have a rest of faith. The Adversary‘s opportunity is when we think that we are something and try to open our own door. Our thoughts, words, and deeds must all be in the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh yes, we need to be sober—not only sober, but also vigilant. We need not only to be filled with the Spirit but also to have a ―go forth‖ in us, a knowledge that God‘s holy presence is with us. To be sober and vigilant, to have an ability to judge, discern, and balance things that differ—this is what we need.

“Your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith” (vv. 8,9). We must resist in the hour when Satan‘s schemes may bewilder us, when we are almost swept off our feet, and when darkness is upon us to such a degree that it seems as if some evil thing had overtaken us. “Resist him, steadfast in the faith.” “He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalms 121:4). God covers us, for no human can stand against the powers of hell.

“After you have suffered a while” (1 Peter 5:10). Then there is some suffering? Yes! But it is “not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). The difference is so great that our suffering is not even worthy of mention. Ours is an eternal glory, from glory to glory, until we are swallowed up, until we are swallowed up in Him, the Lord of glory.

Thought for today: God is close at hand to deliver all the time.

July 5

If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well. — Mark 5:28

Scripture reading: Mark 5:25–6:6

What a privilege to care for the flock of God, to be used by
God to encourage the people, to help stand against the
many trials that affect the needy. What a holy calling! We
each have our own work, and we must do it, so that boldness may be ours in the day of the Master‘s appearing, and so that no man can take our crowns (Revelation 3:11). Since the Lord is always encouraging us, we have encouragement for others. We must have a willingness, a ready mind, a yielding to the mind of the Spirit. There is no place for the child of God in God‘s great plan except in humility.

God can never do all He wants to do, all that He came to do
through the Word, until He gets us to the place where He can trust us, and where we are in abiding fellowship with Him in His great plan for the world‘s redemption. We have this truth illustrated in the life of Jacob. It took God twenty-one years to bring Jacob to the place of humility, contrition of heart, and brokenness of spirit. God even gave him power to wrestle with strength, and Jacob said, “I think I can manage after all,” until God touched his thigh, making him know that he was mortal and that he was dealing with immortality. As long as we think we can save ourselves, we will try to do it.

In Mark 5:25–34, we have the story of the woman who had suffered many things from many physicians and had spent all that she had. She was no better but rather grew worse. She said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” She came to know her need. It is when we are empty and undone, when we come to God in our nothingness and helplessness, that He picks us up.

Thought for today: Our full cupboard is often our greatest hindrance.

July 4

Behold the Lamb of God! — John 1:36

Scripture reading: John 1:6–36

John the Baptist‘s clothing was camel‘s hair, his belt leather, his food locusts and wild honey (Matthew 3:4). No angels, shepherds, wise men, or stars heralded John‘s birth. But the heavenly messenger Gabriel, who had spoken to Daniel and to Mary, also spoke to John‘s father, Zacharias.

In the wilderness, John was without the food and clothing of his earthly father‘s priestly home. He had only a groan, a cry—the cry of the Spirit. Yet from John‘s place in the wilderness, he moved the whole land. God cried through him. It was the cry of the Spirit—oh, that awful cry. All the land was moved by that piercing cry.

God spoke to John and told him about a new thing—water
baptism. It was a clean cut; it was a new way. He had been with those of the circumcision; now he was an outcast. It was the breaking down of the old plan.

The people heard his cry—oh, that cry, the awful cry of the
Spirit—and the message that he gave: “‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’ (v. 2). Make straight paths—no treading down of others or exacting undue rights. ‘Make straight paths for your feet’ (Hebrews 12:13).” All were startled! All were awakened! They thought the Messiah had come. The searching was tremendous! Is this He? Who can it be? John said, “I am a voice, crying, crying, making a way for the Messiah to come” (John 1:23).

Individuals were purged; they found purpose. God pressed life through John. Through him, God moved multitudes and changed the situation. The banks of the Jordan were covered with people. The conviction was tremendous. They cried out. The prophet Isaiah had predicted, “The rough ways [will be made] smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God” (Luke 3:5–6). The people, the multitude, cried out and were baptized by John in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

Oh, to be alone with God. God‘s Word came to John when he was alone: “The word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Luke 3:2–3).

Alone! Alone!
Jesus bore it all alone!
He gave Himself to save His own.
He suffered—bled and died alone—alone.

Oh, to be alone with God, to get His mind, His thoughts, and His impression and revelation of the need of the people.

There was nothing ordinary about John—all was extraordinary. Herod was reproved by him because of Herodias, his brother Philip‘s wife, and for all the evils that Herod had done. Herodias‘s daughter danced before Herod, who promised her up to half his kingdom. She asked for John the Baptist‘s head. (See Matthew 14:3–11.)

This holy man was alone. God had John in such a way that he could express that cry—the burden for the whole land. He could cry for the sins of the people. God is holy. We are the children of Abraham—the children of faith. Awful judgment is coming. Cry! Cry!

John could not help but cry because of the people‘s sin. John had been filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother‘s womb (Luke 1:15). He had the burden. He was stern, but through his work, the land was open to Jesus. Jesus walked in the way; He came a new way.

“John came neither eating nor drinking” (Matthew11:18) —John came crying. John‘s father and mother were left behind. His heart bled at the altar. He bore the burden, the cry, the need of the people. The only place he could breathe and be free was in the wilderness—the atmosphere of heaven—until he turned with a message to declare the preparation needed. Before Jesus came, repentance came to open up the place of redemption.

Like John, there must be a working of the Spirit in you; then
God will work through you for others.

Thought for today: God is with a person who has only a cry.

July 3

To each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ‟s gift. — Ephesians 4:7

Scripture reading: Ephesians 4:1–16

The apostle Paul spoke about the grace and the gifts of Christ—not the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but the gifts of Christ. You are joined to Christ‘s body the moment you believe. For instance, some of you may have children, and they have different names, but the moment they appeared in the world, they were in your family. The moment they were born, they became a part of your family.

The moment you are born of God, you are in the family, and
you are in the body, as He is in the body, and you are in the body collectively and particularly. After you come into the body, then the body has to receive the sealing of the promise, or the fulfillment of promise, that Christ will be in you, reigning in you mightily. The Holy Spirit will come to unveil the King in all His glory so that He might reign as King there, the Holy Spirit serving in every way to make Him King.

You are in the body. The Holy Spirit gives gifts in the body.
Living in this holy order, you may find that revelation comes to you and makes you a prophet. Some of you may have a clear understanding that you have been called into apostleship. Some of you may have perfect knowledge that you are to be pastors. When you come to be sealed with the Spirit of promise, then you find out that Jesus is pleased and gives gifts in order that the church might come into a perfect position of being so blended together that there could be no division. Jesus wants His church to be a perfect body perfect in stature, perfect in oneness in Him.

I have been speaking to this end: that you may see the calling that Paul was speaking about—humility of mind, meekness of spirit, knowing that God is in you and through you, knowing that the power of the Spirit is mightily bringing you to the place where not only the gifts of the Spirit but also the gifts of Christ have been given to you, making you eligible for the great work you have to do.

My purpose is not to tell what God has for you in the future.
Press in now, and claim your rights. Let the Lord Jesus be so glorified that He will make you fruit-bearers—strong in power, giving glory to God, having “no confidence in the flesh” (Philippians 3:3) but being separated from natural things, now in the Spirit, living fully in the will of God.

Thought for today: Let your whole soul reach out unto God; dare to breathe in heaven; dare to be awakened to all God‘s mind; listen to the language of the Holy Spirit.

July 2

One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. — Ephesians 4:6

Scripture reading: Psalm 95

Think of it! It does not matter what the Enemy brings to you, or tries to bring; the Father, who is above all, is over you. The God of power, majesty, and glory can bring you to a place of dethroning everything else! Do you dare to believe it?

Remember, God our Father is so intensely desirous to have all the fullness of the manifestation of His power that we do not have to have one thing that His Son did not come to bring. We have to have perfect redemption; we have to know all the powers of righteousness; we have to understand perfectly that we are brought to the place where He is with us in all power, dethroning the power of the Enemy.

God over you—that is real. The God who is over you is more
than a million times greater than the Devil, than the powers of evil, than the powers of darkness. How do I know? Hear what the Devil said to God about Job: “Have You not made a hedge around him?” (Job 1:10). The Devil was unable to get near Job because there was a hedge. What was the hedge? It was the almighty power of God. It was not a thorny hedge; it was not a hedge of thistles. It was the presence of the Lord all around Job. And the presence of the Lord Almighty is so around us that the Devil cannot break through that wonderful covering.

The Devil is against the living Christ and wants to destroy Him; if you are filled with the living Christ, the Devil is eager to get you out of the way in order to destroy Christ‘s power. Say this to the Lord: “Now, Lord, look after this property of Yours.” Then the Devil cannot get near you. When does he get near? When you dethrone Christ, ignoring His rightful position over you, in you, and through you.

Thought for today: You will be strong if you believe this truth: faith is the victory—always. Glory to Jesus!

July 1

Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. — Ephesians 4:3

Scripture reading: Psalm 133

You are bound forever out of loyalty to God to see that no division comes into the church body, to see that nothing comes into the assembly, as it came into David‘s flock, to tear and rend the body. You have to be careful. If a person comes along with a prophecy and you find that it is tearing down and bringing trouble, denounce it accordingly; judge it by the Word. You will find that all true prophecy will be perfectly full of hopefulness. It will have compassion; it will have comfort; it will have edification. So if anything comes into the church that you know is hurting the flock and disturbing the assembly, you must see to it that you begin to pray so that this thing is put to death.

Bring unity in the bonds of perfection so that the church of
God will receive edification. Then the church will begin to be built up in the faith and the establishing of truth, and believers will be one. There is one body. Recognize that fact. When schism comes into the body, believers always act as though there were more than one body.

Do not forget that God means for us to be very faithful to the church so that we do not allow anything to come into the church to break up the body. You cannot find anything in the body in its relation to Christ that has schism in it. Christ‘s life in the body—there is no schism in that. When Christ‘s life comes into the church, there will be no discord; there will be a perfect blending of heart and hand, and it will be lovely. Endeavor “to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Thought for today: When we think that the church is poor and needy, we forget that the spirit of intercession can unlock every safe in the world.

June 30

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. —Philippians 2:5

Scripture reading: Romans 6:1–14

Have you been to the place of illumination? Illumination means that your very mind, which was depraved, is now the mind of Christ; the very nature that was bound now has a resurrection touch; your very body has come in contact with the life of God until you who were lost are found, and you who were dead are alive again by the resurrection power of the Word of the life of Christ. What a glorious inheritance in the Spirit!

Believer, if you have not reached all this, the ladder extends
from heaven to earth to take you from earth to heaven. Do not be afraid of taking the steps. You will not slip back. Have faith in God. Experience divine resurrection life—more divine in thought, more wonderful in revelation. Resurrection life means living in the Spirit, wakened into all likeness, made alive by the same Spirit!

Are you lowly and meek in your mind? It is the divine plan of
the Savior. You must be like Him. Do you desire to be like Him? There is nothing but yourself that can hinder you in this. You are the one who stops the current. You are the one who stops the life.

While ministering in one place, we had a banquet for people who were distressed—people who were lame and weary, blind and diseased in every way. A dear man got hold of a boy who was encased in iron from top to bottom, lifted him up, and placed him onto the platform. Hands were laid on him in the name of Jesus. “Papa! Papa! Papa!” the boy said. “It‘s going all over me! Oh, Papa, come and take these irons off!” I do like to hear children speak; they say such wonderful things. The father took the irons off, and the life of God had gone all over the boy!

Don‘t you know this is the resurrection touch? This is the divine life; this is what God has brought us into. Let it go over us, Lord—the power of the Holy Spirit, the resurrection of heaven, the sweetness of Your blessing, the joy of the Lord!

Thought for today: God rejoices when we manifest a faith that holds Him to His Word.