As we obey the Holy Spirit, those gifts of grace will become profuse in our midst. Miracles will come to pass constantly because grace operates unhindered as we obey Him. As the Holy Spirit ministers grace, people are miraculously healed and delivered.

There are different areas of healing. Not all healing results from a gift of the Spirit. As believers, we have authority over sickness and disease. We also receive from God just because we believe and act on God’s Word.

But through the gifts of healings, God personally takes care of a matter. He comes on the scene and gets the job done. He says, “Let Me take over on this one.” This is the way He wants to operate in our midst. He wants us to become so obedient to Him, that He can do as He desires in the whole earth through us—and not just to the Church, but through the Church to those who sit in darkness.

See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.... Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: for our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:25, 28-29).

It is only through the favor of God given to us by the Holy Spirit that we are able to come to a place of obedience with Him.

You may think, I would love to live for God. I would love to live in obedience to Him. But I know I could never do it.

You are right. You could never do it—by yourself. But you won’t have to do it alone. You have the Spirit of God to help you. Remember, He is the Great Enabler. Just take the instructions of the Lord one step at a time. Prepare your heart. Feed on the Word. Pray in the Spirit. Do as you are told, and He will work in your behalf.

Jesus said He could of Himself do nothing (John 5:19). But with the Holy Ghost’s power in Him and on Him, He could do anything! He was not alone. “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him” (Acts 10:38).

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Strife will cause the grace of God to fail in our lives. Strife, unforgiveness, being critical—these things restrain the Holy Spirit from moving on our behalf. He will be hindered in blessing
and favoring us, because the Spirit of God ministers grace through our obedience.

“This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you” (John 15:12). We are to love as Jesus loved. If we don’t walk in love, we won’t be able to walk in the manifested grace of God on a day-to-day basis. If we fail to keep this commandment, the work of God’s Spirit is greatly hindered in our lives.

If you have been praying for some specific needs, but have not been getting results, check your love life. Are you loving the people with whom you come into contact? If not, the power of God is restrained in your life because you are walking in disobedience. Until the love of God begins to operate in your life, the Holy Spirit will be unable to minister unhindered to you to accomplish in your life the good that God desires.

The Bible says when man subverts his ways, his heart frets against the Lord (Proverbs 19:3, The Amplified Bible). Many times we go about living the way we want and simply expect God to fill in the gaps when we get into trouble.

When trouble comes, we say, “God, why did You let this happen to me?”

God did not let it happen to you. You let it happen to you by being disobedient.

You might say, “Well, I didn’t know any better.” Then you need to become more knowledgeable. You cannot stay in ignorance and stay in blessing at the same time. Satan will cram defeat down your throat as long as you will stand there and take it.

The word grace means “free, undeserved favor.” The Greek word for grace is charis. When Christians believe in the gifts of the Spirit, they are called charismatics. What are the gifts of the Spirit? They are simply gifts of God’s grace shed abroad in our midst. We don’t deserve them. We can’t earn them. They come at God’s will. They are a manifestation of His grace. Many times a person who receives a gift will not even be standing in faith. (In this situation, someone’s faith is active, but not necessarily the one who receives.) God just comes down by His grace and distributes the gifts of the Spirit as He wills. Why? Because God is good. The gifts of the Spirit are gifts of grace. God lavishes them upon us because of His goodness and His mercy.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

We have seen that the word chastisement
means “punishment by inflicting pain” and
that Jesus bore our chastisement, or our punishment,
with pain on the cross.

The Greek word translated chastise in the
New Testament actually means “to instruct or
to train.” The question often arises, “How does
God chastise His own?”

How does God instruct and train us? Does
He unleash His bad dog to bite us on the leg,
so we will learn to wear our boots? No, He
does not!

For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth,
and scourgeth every son whom
he receiveth. If ye endure chastening,
God dealeth with you as with sons; for
what son is he whom the father chasteneth
not? But if ye be without chastisement,
whereof all are partakers, then are
ye bastards, and not sons.

Furthermore we have had fathers of
our flesh which corrected us, and we
gave them reverence: shall we not much
rather be in subjection unto the Father
of spirits, and live? (Hebrews 12:6-9)

Jesus said, “That which is born of the flesh is
flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit”
(John 3:6). Our fleshly fathers correct us in the
flesh, but God is a spirit and He uses spiritual
tools, not carnal tools. He uses spiritual
weapons, not carnal weapons. Jesus said, “My
words are spirit.” He chastises with His words.

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth.”
A loving God doesn’t send tornadoes or cancer
to His children. God never told me not to pray
for someone’s healing because He had put sickness
on them. Jesus said, “If you’ve seen Me,
you’ve seen the Father” (John 14:9). He never
told a leper that he would have to keep leprosy
so God could teach him something. The Word
says in Acts 10:38, “God anointed Jesus of
Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power:
who went about doing good, and healing all that
were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”
God did these things through Jesus. God is not
double-minded—He is single-minded.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Psalm 40:11
KJV—Withhold not thou thy tender mercies
from me, O Lord: let thy lovingkindness and
thy truth continually preserve me.

AMP—Withhold not Your tender mercies from
me, O Lord; let Your loving-kindness and Your
truth continually preserve me!

Moffatt—Thou wilt not keep back from me
thy mercy; thy love and faithfulness shall ever
be my guard.

NIV—Do not withhold your mercy from me,
O Lord; may your love and your truth always
protect me.

Psalm 107:1-3
KJV—O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is
good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Let the
redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath
redeemed from the hand of the enemy; and
gathered them out of the lands, from the east,
and from the west, from the north, and from
the south.

AMP—O give thanks to the Lord, for He is
good; for His mercy and loving-kindness
endure forever! Let the redeemed of the Lord
say so, whom He has delivered from the hand
of the adversary, and gathered them out of
the lands, from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the...south.

Moffatt—Hallelujah! “Give thanks to the
Eternal!—he is good, his kindness never fails!”
Be this the song of the redeemed, redeemed
by the Eternal from their foes, gathered from
lands afar, from east and west, from north
and south.

NIV—Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever. Let the redeemed
of the Lord say this—those he redeemed
from the hand of the foe, those he gathered
from the lands, from east and west, from
north and south.

Isaiah 54:10
KJV—For the mountains shall depart, and the
hills be removed; but my kindness shall not
depart from thee, neither shall the covenant
of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that
hath mercy on thee.

AMP—Though the mountains should depart
and the hills be shaken or removed, yet My
love and kindness shall not depart from
you, nor shall My covenant of peace and
completeness be removed, says the Lord,
Who has compassion on you.

Moffatt—Though mountains be removed, and
hills be shaken, never shall my love leave you,
my compact for your welfare shall stand firm:
so promises the Eternal in his pity.

NIV—“Though the mountains be shaken and
the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for
you will not be shaken nor my covenant of
peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has
compassion on you.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Deuteronomy 4:31
KJV—(For the Lord thy God is a merciful God;)
he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee,
nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which
he sware unto them.

Deuteronomy 7:8
KJV—Because the Lord loved you, and because
he would keep the oath which he had sworn
unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you
out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you
out of the house of bondmen.

AMP—Because the Lord loves you and
because He would keep the oath which He
had sworn to your fathers, the Lord has
brought you out with a mighty hand and
redeemed you out of the house of bondage.

Moffatt—Because the Eternal loves you,
because he meant to keep his oath to your
fathers, that the Eternal has brought you out
by sheer strength, rescuing you from that
slave-pen.

NIV—Because the Lord loved you and kept
the oath he swore to your forefathers that
he brought you out with a mighty hand and
redeemed you from the land of slavery.

Psalm 6:4
KJV—Return, O Lord, deliver my soul: oh save
me for thy mercies’ sake.

AMP—Return [to my relief], O Lord, deliver
my life; save me for the sake of Your steadfast
love and mercy.

Moffatt—O thou Eternal, save my life once
more; for thy love’s sake, succour me.

NIV—Turn, O Lord, and deliver me; save me
because of your unfailing love.

Psalm 17:7
KJV—Show thy marvellous lovingkindness, O
thou that savest by thy right hand them which
put their trust in thee from those that rise up
against them.

AMP—Show Your marvelous loving-kindness,
O You Who save by Your right hand those
who trust and take refuge in You from those
who rise up against them.

Moffatt—Strong saviour, in thy kindness
interpose, for those who shelter with thee
from their foes.

NIV—Show the wonder of your great love,
you who save by your right hand those who
take refuge in you from their foes.

Psalm 32:10
KJV—Many sorrows shall be to the wicked:
but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall
compass him about.

AMP—Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but he who trusts in, relies on, and confidently
leans on the Lord shall be compassed about
with mercy and with loving-kindness.

Moffatt—Many a pang falls to the ungodly,
but he who trusts in the Eternal shall enjoy
his favour.

NIV—Many are the woes of the wicked, but
the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man
who trusts in him.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries