Category: Daily Devotionals – Smith Wigglesworth

October 8

There has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. — Matthew 11:11

Scripture reading: Matthew 11:1–11

God wants to bring to us a living realization of what the Word of God is, what the Lord God means by what He says, and what we may expect if we believe it. I am certain that the Lord wishes to put before us a living fact that will, by our faith, bring into action a principle that is within our own hearts so that Christ can dethrone every power of Satan.

Only this truth revealed to our hearts can make us so much greater than we ever had any idea we could be. There is only the need of revelation and of stirring ourselves up to understand the mightiness that God has within us. We may prove what He has accomplished in us if we will only be willing to carry through what He has already accomplished in us.

For God has not accomplished something in us that should lie dormant, but He has brought within us a power, a revelation, a life that is so great that I believe God wants to reveal the greatness of it. There isn‘t anything you can imagine that is greater than what man may accomplish through Him.

But everything on a human basis is very limited compared with what God has for us on a spiritual basis. If man can accomplish much in a short time, what may we accomplish if we will believe the revealed Word and take it as truth that God has given us and that He wants to bring out in revelation and force?

Notice that John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus. Within his own short history, John the Baptist had the power of God revealed to him as probably no man in the old dispensation had. He had a wonderful revelation. He had a mighty anointing.

See how he moved Israel. See how the power of God rested upon him. See how he had the vision of Jesus and went forth with power and turned the hearts of Israel to Him. You, too, can do great things for God if you are a part of His kingdom!

Thought for today: Oh, the possibilities of man in the hands of God!

October 7

And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” — Acts 19:15

Scripture reading: Acts 19:11–20

What is belief? Let me sum it up in a few sentences. To believe is to have the knowledge of Him in whom you believe. It is not to believe in the word Jesus, but to believe in the nature of Christ, to believe in the vision of Christ, for all power has been given unto Him, and greater is He who is within you in the revelation of faith than he who is in the world. (See 1 John 4:4.) And so I say to you, do not be discouraged if every demon has not gone out. The very moment they have gone, do not think that is the end of it. What we have to see is that if all it takes is using the name of Jesus, those evil powers would have gone out in that name by the sons of Sceva. It is not that. It is the power of the Holy Spirit with the revelation of the deity of our Christ of glory; it is knowing that all power is given unto Him. Through the knowledge of Christ, and through faith in who He is, demons must surrender, demons must go out.

I say this reverently: these bodies of ours are so constructed by God that we may be filled with the divine revelation of the Son of God until it is manifest to the devils we confront, and they will have to go. The Master is in; they see the Master. “Jesus I know, and Paul I know.” The ministry of the Master! How we need to get to know Him until within us we are full of the manifestation of the King over all demons.

Brothers and sisters, my heart is full. The depths of my yearnings are for the Pentecostal people. My cry is that we will not miss the opportunity of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, that Christ may be manifested in our human frames (2 Corinthians 4:10) until every power of evil will be subject to the Christ who is manifested in us. The devils know Jesus.

Two important things are before us. First, we must surrender the mastery of ourselves to God. Then the embodiment of the Spirit gloriously covers our lives so that Jesus is glorified to the full. So first it is the losing of ourselves, and then it is the incoming of Another; it is the glorifying of Him that will fulfill all things, and when He gets hold of our lives, He can do it. When God gets hold of your life because you have yielded yourself to Him in this way, He will be delighted to allow Christ to be so manifested in you that it will be no difficulty for the Devil to know who you are.

I am satisfied that the purpose of Pentecost is to reestablish God in human flesh. Do I need to say it again? The power of the Holy Spirit has to come to be enthroned in the human life so that it does not matter where we find ourselves. Christ is manifested in the place where devils are, the place where religious devils are, the place where false religion and unbelief are, the place where formal religion has taken the place of holiness and righteousness. You need to have holiness—the righteousness and Spirit of the Master—so that in every walk of life, everything that is not like our Lord Jesus will have to depart. That is what is needed today.

I ask you in the Holy Spirit to seek the place where He is in power. “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” May God stamp this sobering question upon us, for the Devil is not afraid of us. May the Holy Spirit make us terrors of evildoers today, for the Holy Spirit came into us to judge the world of sin, of unbelief, and of righteousness; that is the purpose of the Holy Spirit. (See John 16:7–11.) Then Jesus will know us, and the devils will know us.

Thought for today: It is only when you are conquered by Christ that He is enthroned.

October 6

In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;…they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover. — Mark 16:17–18

Scripture reading: Mark 16:9–19

May God help us to understand the ministry of knowing Christ. I am satisfied, first of all, that the power is in the knowledge of His blood and of His perfect holiness. I am perfectly cleansed from all sin and made holy in the knowledge of His holiness. Second, as I know Him; and as I know His power, the same power that works in me as I minister only through the knowledge of Him; and as I know the Christ who is manifested by it; such knowledge will be effective to accomplish the very thing that the Word of God says it will: it will have power over all evil. I minister today in the power of the knowledge of Him. Beyond that, there is a certain sense in which I overcome the world according to my faith in Him. I am more than a conqueror (Romans 8:37) over everything through the knowledge that I have that He is over everything. He has been crowned by the Father to bring everything into subjection (Ephesians 1:22).

Shouting won‘t cast out an evil spirit, but there is an anointing that is gloriously felt within and brings the act of casting out the demon into perfect harmony with the will of God. We cannot help shouting, though shouting won‘t do it. The power over evil spirits is in the ministry of the knowledge that He is Lord over all demons, over all powers of wickedness.

Paul went about clothed in the Spirit. This was wonderful. Was his body full of power? No! He sent forth handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him, and when they touched the needy, they were healed and demons were cast out. Was there power in his body? No! There was power in Jesus. Paul ministered through the power of the anointing of the Holy Spirit and through faith in the name of Jesus.

Sometimes demon powers are dealt with in very different ways. But the ministry of the Spirit is administered by the power of the word Jesus, and His name never fails to accomplish the purpose that the one in charge has wisdom or discernment to see. This is because, along with the Spirit of ministry, there comes the revelation of the need of the one who is bound.

The Spirit ministers the name of Jesus in many ways. I see it continually happening. I see it working, and all the time the Lord is building up a structure of His own power by a living faith in the sovereignty of Jesus‘ name. If I turn to John‘s gospel, I get the whole thing practically in a nutshell: “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3). We must have the knowledge and power of God and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, the embodiment of God, in order to be clothed with God.

There are those who have come into line: they have the blessed Christ within and the power of the baptism, which is the revelation of the Christ of God within. This is so evidenced in the person who is baptized in the Spirit, and Christ is so plainly abiding, that the moment the person is confronted with evil, he is instantly sensitive to the nature of this confrontation, and he is able to deal with it accordingly.

The difference between the sons of Sceva and Paul was this: they said, “It is only the use of the name that is important.” How many people only use the name; how many times are people defeated because they think it is just the name; how many people have been brokenhearted because it did not work when they used
the name? If I read this into my text, “He who believes will speak in tongues; he who believes will cast out devils; he who believes will lay hands on the sick and they will recover” (see Mark 16:17–18), it seems perfectly easy on the surface of it. But you must understand this: there are volumes to be applied to the word believe.

Thought for today: To believe is to believe in the need of the majesty of the glory of the power of God. Believing in Christ is all power, and it brings all other powers into subjection.

October 5

There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. — Acts 4:12

Scripture reading: Isaiah 42:1–13

Paul did not have any power of his own that enabled him to use the name of Jesus as he did. But when he had to go through the privations and the difficulties, and even when all things seemed as if they were shipwrecked, God stood by him and caused him to know that there was Someone with him, supporting him all the time, who was able to carry him through and bring out what his heart was longing for all the time. He seemed to be so unconsciously filled with the Holy Spirit that all that was needed was to bring the aprons and the handkerchiefs to him and then send them forth to heal and deliver. I can imagine these itinerant Jewish exorcists and these seven sons of Sceva in Ephesus looking on and seeing him and saying, ―The power seems to be all in the name. Don‘t you notice that when he sends out the handkerchiefs and the aprons, he says, “In the name of the Lord Jesus, I command the evil spirit to come out‘?” (See Acts 19.)

These people had been watching, and they thought, “It is only the name; that is all that is needed,” and so they said, “We will do the same.” They were determined to make this thing work, and they came to a man who was possessed with an evil power. As they entered into the house where he was, they said, “We charge you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out.” The demon said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” (Acts 19:15). Then the evil power leaped upon them and tore their clothes off their backs, and they went out naked and wounded.

Oh, that God would help us to understand the name of Jesus! There is something in that name that attracts the whole world. It is the name, oh, it is still the name, but you must understand that there is the ministry of the name. It is the Holy Spirit who is behind the ministry. The power is in knowing Him.

Thought for today: The name of Jesus brings power over evil spirits.

October 4

Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. — Philippians 3:13–14

Scripture reading: Colossians 1:9–18

When Jesus was thirty years old, the time came when it was made manifest at the Jordan River that He was the Son of God. How beautifully it was made known! It had to be made known first to one who was full of the vision of God. The vision comes to those who are full of God. When God has you in His own plan, what a change; how things operate! You see things in a new light. God is being greatly glorified as you yield from day to day. The Spirit seems to lay hold of you and bring you further along. Yes, it is a pressing on, and then He gives us touches of His wonderful power, manifestations of the glory and indications of greater things to follow. These days that we are living in now speak of even better days to come.

Where would we be today if we had stopped short, if we had not fulfilled the vision that God gave us? I am thinking about the time when Christ sent the Spirit. Saul, who later became the apostle Paul, did not know much about the Spirit. His heart was stirred against the followers of Jesus, his eyes were blinded to the truth, and he was going to put the newborn church to an end in a short time; but Jesus was looking on. We can scarcely understand the whole process—only as God seems to show us—when He gets us into His plan and works with us little by little.

We are all amazed that we are among the “tongues people.” Some of us would never have been in this Pentecostal movement if we had not been drawn, but God has a wonderful way of drawing us. Paul never intended to be among the disciples; he never intended to have anything to do with this Man called Jesus. But God was working. In the same way, God has been working with us and has brought us to this place. It is marvelous! Oh, the vision of God, the wonderful manifestation that God has for Israel!

I have one purpose in my heart, and it is surely God‘s plan for me: I want you to see that Jesus Christ is the greatest manifestation in all the world and that His power is unequaled, but that there is only one way to minister it. Some of the people in Ephesus, after they had seen Paul working wonders by the power of Christ, began to act in human ways. (See Acts 19.) If I want to do anything for God, I see that it is necessary for me to get the knowledge of God. I cannot work on my own; I must get the vision of God. It must be a divine revelation of the Son of God. It must be that.

I can see as clearly as anything that Saul, in his mad pursuit, had to be stopped along the way. After he was stopped and had the vision from heaven and the light from heaven, he instantly realized that he had been working in the wrong way. And as soon as the power of the Holy Spirit fell upon him, he began in the way in which God wanted him to go. And it was wonderful how he had to suffer to come into the way. (See Acts 9:15–16.) A broken spirit, a tried life, and being driven into a corner as if some strange thing had happened (1 Peter 4:12) —these are surely the ways in which we to get to know the way of God.

Thought for today: Did it ever strike you that we cannot be too full for a vision, that we cannot have too much of God?

October 3

Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. — 2 Peter 3:18

Scripture reading: Hebrews 12:12–24

When I think about Pentecost, I am astonished from day to day because of its mightiness, its wonderfulness, and how the glory overshadows it. I think sometimes about these things, and they make me feel that we have only just touched the surface of it. Truly it is so, but we must thank God that we have touched it. We must not give in because we have only touched the surface. Whatever God has done in the past, His name is still the same. When hearts are burdened and they come face-to-face with the need of the day, they look into God‘s Word, and it brings in a propeller of power or an anointing that makes them know that He has truly visited.

It was a wonderful day when Jesus left the glory to come to earth. I can imagine God the Father and all the angels and all heaven so wonderfully stirred that day when the angels were sent to tell the wonderful story of “peace on earth and good will to men.” (See Luke 2:14.) It was a glorious day when they beheld the Babe for the first time and God was looking on. I suppose it would take a big book to contain all that happened after that day up until Jesus was thirty years old. Everything in His life was working up to a great climax. The mother of Jesus hid many of these things in her heart. (See verse 19.)

I know that Pentecost in my life is working up to a climax; it is not all accomplished in a day. There are many waters and all kinds of experiences that we go through before we get to the real summit of everything. The power of God is here to prevail. God is with us.

Thought for today: When the Spirit of God is waiting at your heart‘s door, do not resist Him; instead, open your heart to the touch of God.

October 2

I have come to do Your will, O God. — Hebrews 10:9

Scripture reading: Psalm 51

As we surrender completely to God, He will be delighted to hand to us the gift that He desires us to possess.The more we realize that God has furnished us with a gift, the more completely we will be united with Jesus, so that people will be conscious of Him rather than of His gift.

If everything is not of the Holy Spirit, and if we are not so lost and controlled in the ministry of the gift that it is only to be Jesus, it will all be a failure and come to nothing. None were so self-conscious as those who said, “In Your name, [we have] cast out demons” (Matthew 7:22). They were so controlled by the thought that they had done it all, that God was not in it. But when He comes forth and does it, it is all right.

There is a place in the Holy Spirit where we will not allow unbelief to affect us, for God has all power in heaven and earth. I stand in a place where my faith is not to be limited because I have the knowledge that He is in me and I in Him.

Some of you have broken hearts; you have a longing for something to strengthen you in the midst of the conditions that exist in your lives, and a power to make these conditions different. You have a mighty power that is greater than all natural power. You can take victory over your homes and your spouses and children, and you must do it in the Lord‘s way. Suppose you do see many things that ought to be different; if it is your cross, you must take it and win the victory for God. It can be done, for He who is in you is greater than all the power of hell (1 John 4:4). I believe that anyone filled with the Holy Spirit is equal to a legion of demons any day. The Holy Spirit has His dwelling place within me and is stirring up my heart and life to adore Jesus. Other things must be left behind; I must adore Him.

Thought for today: It is worth everything to gain the Holy Spirit.

October 1

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant. — 1 Corinthians 12:1

Scripture reading: Romans 11:29–12:8

God wants us to enter into the rest of faith. He desires us to have all confidence in Him. He purposes that His Word will be established in our hearts; and, as we believe His Word, we will see that “all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26).

There is a great weakness in the church of Christ because of an awful ignorance concerning the Spirit of God and the gifts He has come to bring. God wants us to be powerful in every way because of the revelation of the knowledge of His will concerning the power and manifestation of His Spirit. He desires us to be continually hungry to receive more and more of His Spirit.

In the past, I have organized many conferences, and I have found that it is better to have a man on my platform who has not received the baptism but who is hungry for all that God has for him than a man who has received the baptism, is satisfied, has settled down, and has become stationary and stagnant. But of course I would prefer a man who is baptized with the Holy Spirit and is still hungry for more of God.

It is impossible to overestimate the importance of being filled with the Spirit. It is impossible for us to meet the conditions of the day, to “walk in the light as He is in the light” (1 John 1:7), to subdue kingdoms and work righteousness and bind the power of Satan, unless we are filled with the Holy Spirit.

We read that, in the early church, “they continued steadfastly in the apostles‟ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). It is important for us also to continue steadfastly in these same things.

God wants us to understand spiritual gifts and to “earnestly desire the best gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:31). He also wants us to enter into the “more excellent way” (v. 31) of the fruit of the Spirit. We must implore God for these gifts. It is a serious thing to have the baptism and yet be stationary. We must be willing to deny ourselves everything to receive the revelation of God‘s truth and to receive the fullness of the Spirit. Only that will satisfy God, and nothing less must satisfy us.

I knew a man who was full of the Holy Spirit and would only preach when he knew that he was mightily anointed by the power of God. He was once asked to preach at a Methodist church. He was staying at the minister‘s house and he said, “You go on to church and I will follow.” The place was packed with people, but this man did not show up. The Methodist minister, becoming anxious, sent his little girl to inquire why he did not come. As she came to the bedroom door, she heard him crying out three times, “I will not go.” She went back and reported that she had heard the man say three times that he would not go. The minister was troubled about it, but almost immediately afterward the man came in. As he preached that night, the power of God was tremendously manifested. The preacher later asked him, “Why did you tell my daughter that you were not coming?” He answered, “I know when I am filled. I am an ordinary man, and I told the Lord that I did not dare to go and would not go until He gave me a fresh filling of the Spirit. The moment the glory filled me and overflowed, I came to the meeting.”

Yes, there is a power, a blessing, an assurance, a rest in the presence of the Holy Spirit. You can feel His presence and know that He is with you. You do not need to spend an hour without this inner knowledge of His holy presence. With His power upon you, there can be no failure. You are above par all the time.

Thought for today: Many people today are in the midst of a great river of life but are dying of thirst because they do not dip down and take it.

September 30

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. — Romans 5:1–2

Scripture reading: 1 Corinthians 1

You are justified. You are being brought into a place of peace. And remember, the peace of God is different from any other peace. It “surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7); it helps you to keep your composure. You are not shaken by earthly things. It is a deep peace, created by the knowledge of a living faith, which is the living principle of the foundation of all truth. Christ is in us, the hope and the evidence of glory (Colossians 1:27).

See how rich you are in Christ: “Through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

Peter called it a “precious faith” (2 Peter 1:1). It has passed through Abraham, Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit. We have access, we have a right into, we have an open door to all that the Father has, all that Jesus has, and all that the Holy Spirit has. Nothing can keep us out of it. Jesus Christ is the “Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 1:8). Through Him, we may know grace, favor, and mercy, which will lift us and take us through into grace and peace: “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Peter1:2). Do you want grace and peace to be multiplied? You have it if you dare to believe. We have the right to the promises and the right to all the inheritance of which Christ has made us heirs.

Thought for today: Human weaknesses can spoil the effectiveness of faith. Victories become uncertain, prayers lose the anointing, and the power to take hold is hindered. But when God breathes His life into us, “we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand.”

September 29

For all that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life; is not of the Father but is of the world. — 1 John 2:16

Scripture reading: 2 Timothy 1:6–14

It has been a long time now since the debt of sin was settled, our redemption was secured, and death was abolished. Mortality is a hindrance, but death no longer has power. Sin no longer has dominion. You reign in Christ; you take hold of His finished work. Don‘t groan and travail for a week if you are in need; “only believe” (Mark 5:36). Don‘t fight to get some special thing; “only believe.” It is according to your faith that you will receive (Matthew 9:29). God blesses you with faith. “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). If you are free in God, believe, and it will come to pass.

“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God” (Colossians 3:1). Stir yourselves up, beloved! Where are you? I have been planted with Christ in the likeness of His death, and I am risen with Christ (Romans 6:5 KJV). It was a beautiful planting. I am seated with Him in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). God credits me with righteousness through faith in Christ (Romans 4:5), and I believe Him.

Why should I doubt? Why do you doubt? Faith reigns. God makes it possible. How many receive the Holy Spirit, and Satan gets a doubt in? Don‘t doubt; believe. There is power and strength in Him; who will dare to believe God?

Leave Doubting Street; live on Faith-Victory Street. Jesus sent the seventy out, and they came back in victory. (See Luke 10:1–18.) It takes God to make it real. Dare to believe until there is not a sick person, until there is no sickness, until everything that is not of God is withered, and the life of Jesus is implanted within.

Thought for today: We are saved, called with a holy calling—called to be saints, holy, pure, Godlike, sons with power.