Experiencing Christ as the Life-giving Spirit
“But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (John 7:39)
“And when He had said this, He breathed into them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:22)
As the last Adam in the flesh, through the process of death and resurrection, He “became a life-giving Spirit” (1 Cor. 15:45). As He is the embodiment of the Father, so the Spirit is the realization, the reality, of Him. It is as the Spirit that He was breathed into the disciples. It is as the Spirit that He is received into His believers and flows out of them as rivers of living water (John 7:38-39). It is as the Spirit that through His death and resurrection He came back to the disciples, entered into them as their Comforter, and began to abide in them (14:16-17). It is as the Spirit that He can live in the disciples and enable them to live by and with Him (v. 19). It is as the Spirit that He can abide in the disciples and enable them to abide in Him (v. 20; 15:4-5). (Life-study of John, 2nd ed. pp. 535)
The normal Christian life depends upon our knowing and experiencing the Spirit; without Christ being the life-giving Spirit, we cannot experience anything of God in His economy. (Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1), msg. 8, II.D)
2024 International Thanksgiving Blending Conference
The International Thanksgiving Blending Conference will be held in Atlanta, Georgia from November 28 to December 1. Please pray for all the saints traveling, for the speaking brothers and their families, and for all the practical preparations and services. Pray also that as many saints as possible will participate through webcast, whether by watching individually or with others. May the Lord take more crucial steps in the advancement of His purpose during this gathering!
Both live and archived messages will be available for free (without subscription) until December 31 via the “Thanksgiving Conf.” button at lsmwebcast.com. Conference outlines will be available to download beginning Thursday, November 21.
SoCal College Conference Follow-up
Thank you, saints, for your prayers for this past weekend’s college conference at Oak Glen. Nearly 200 college students from around Southern California attended, which is an excellent turnout! A total of 75 saints from LA attended, including 47 students (18 of whom did not grow up in the church life). From the first meeting we could sense the Lord’s blessing, as the atmosphere was full of joy and some of our students were aggressive to share right away. Throughout the weekend we could sense the Lord’s particular speaking and shepherding of each student. The fellowship during mealtimes, in cabins, and in groups was also quite sweet, and the students made an effort to blend with others.
Please continue to pray for the Lord to bring our students on in their experience and enjoyment of Christ according to what they have seen this past weekend!
FTTA
The application deadline for the Spring 2025 term of the Full-time Training in Anaheim is Saturday, November 30. Please pray for many college graduates and young working saints to answer God’s call to go to the training in next term.
French-speaking Europe
Beseech the Lord to supply all the saints who live in French-speaking Europe, and all who are there on “shepherding trips” for weeks or months, to labor diligent in ministering Christ to the seeking contacts so that these ones may grow in truth and life and be added to the church. Also beseech the Lord to thrust out more workers into this harvest and to release the long-term visas.
Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans
The Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans (CEEB) geographical region encompasses the northern part of Central Europe, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. It also touches Romania in the east before turning south to the Balkan countries, including Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, and Turkey.
Today there are approximately 700 adult saints meeting in 34 local churches in the eleven countries mentioned above. Please pray for them to continue faithfully in giving the Lord the cooperation He needs and desires for the carrying out of His move in this region before the end of this age.
The next CEEB Blending Conference will be May 16 to 18, 2025 in Budapest, Hungary.
Things Which Must Quickly Take Place (Rev. 22:6)
“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” (1 Cor. 10:26)
“The king’s heart is like streams of water in the hand of Jehovah; He turns it wherever He wishes.” (Prov. 21:1)
For the Lord’s visible manifestation (Matt. 24:30) and the seven preceding years (Rev. 11:2, note 4; Dan. 9:27, note 1), Europe and Israel are the crucial geographic regions. Leaders in both regions are considering how to get ready for and respond to potential U.S. policies when the President-elect takes office. Petition the Lord that His will be fully accomplished to prepare the relationships between the United States, Europe, and Israel for those seven years.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 8 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1).
- SAVE THE DATE: Lord’s Day, December 8 we will have our fall LA Joint Meeting—all halls, all languages—beginning 10:00 am at Hall 2. Lunch will be provided.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The ministry meeting continues this week starting 7:25 pm.
- Semiannual Training: December 23 to 28 in Anaheim. The firm deadline to register for video training in LA is December 8 at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla.
- Bibles for America‘s latest blog post “Knowing the Truth concerning God’s Forgiveness” is at blog.bfa.org.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry offers free e-booklets to read and share. For example, sixty nuggets and gems have been extracted from the Life-study of Philippians with timely topics such as “The Rich Word for Living Christ” and “The Way to Be Freed from Anxiety.” These e-booklets may be accessed for free at www.lsm.org/life-study-philippians.
- Europe Blending Fellowship: A recording of the fellowship during the post-ITERO blending conference in Warsaw can be viewed at lsm.org/blending. The video begins with a 78‑minute speaking by Brother Ron Kangas and concludes with reports on the Lord’s present move in Europe. Translation is available by following instructions for selecting a language track.
- The LA Years: This oral history project at www.layears.org documents the early years of the church life in Los Angeles from 1958–1974, including written history, photos, and first-hand testimonies.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church’s online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.