The Lord desires that you would be set apart from the world and then for you to draw near to Himself. The word used in both Hebrew and Greek to be “set apart” is the same word translated to holy, consecrated, and sanctified. When you are set apart for the Lord, you are being holy.
Begin on good ground, then go for high ground. “But you are God’s chosen treasure—priests who are kings, a spiritual “nation” set apart as God’s devoted ones…” (1 Peter 2:9 TPT).
There are many lessons that the Lord uses to teach us to be set apart. One of the most powerful lessons we learn in the classroom of obscurity. It is where we will be isolated in our strangeness and not fit into the world around us. This world will often include our church.
Never seek to be popular with man, but to be right with God. It is in obscurity that we discover who we really are. “And it shall be: like people, like priest. So I will punish them for their ways, and reward them for their deeds” (Hosea 4:9 NKJV).
There are many cliques of the popular in the world, both in the secular and in the church. Sometimes you may wish you could fit in, but be thankful when you do not, for it is there you will spend more time with the Lord. The more popular with men, the less time with the Lord.
What if your lack of popularity proves you’re in the center of God’s will? “For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts” (1 Thessalonians 2:4 NLT).
Another lesson the Lord will use to set you apart is to send you into the wilderness. He will create a circumstance that will separate you from yourself and leave you with no other choice but to be alone with Him. Never complain when your only friend happens to be the Lord Jesus Himself.
Sometimes God leaves us in a circumstance until we have learned the lesson. “And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not” (Deuteronomy 8:2 NKJV).
There are times when I will be jealous of those who are more popular in the faith around me. We must learn to see these fleshly feelings for what they are, a spirit of pride welling up within us. The greater worry for us all is if we do not see this, for it is there the deception is certainly strongest.
The worst thing you can do to yourself is to only think of yourself. “Where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is also disorder and every kind of evil” (James 3:16 GNT).
I am thankful to live a life of obscurity as it is a safer place from which we can live out our faith. There are some who have the great challenge of mitigating their pride in the face of their popularity. May the Lord only give us the popularity that would not puff up our own pride.
Where pride rules, troubles begin. “Pride precedes a disaster, and an arrogant attitude precedes a fall” (Proverbs 16:18 NOG).
Being set apart is often equated to being separated from all that is evil. This is most certainly true, but it is only the beginning. We must learn that the Lord wants us to be set apart from anything that hinders our relationship with Him, even if they are good things.
Don’t let religion hinder your faith. You don’t need rituals between yourself and the Lord, but a relationship. The Lord says, “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6 NKJV).
Don’t despise any loneliness you must endure, as it is there the Lord has all your attention. Whatever the reason for your loneliness, know that the Lord has allowed it. God only works in your best interest, and it is up to you to trust Him even if you can’t see it.
God calls you to be higher and then helps you to get there. “Now may God himself, the God of peace, ·make you holy in every way [sanctify you completely/through and through]. May your whole self—spirit, soul, and body—be kept ·faultless [blameless] when our Lord Jesus Christ comes. The One who calls you is ·trustworthy [faithful], and he will ·do this [make this happen]” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 EXB).
When God gets you by yourself, He will grow you more than He can at any other time. Let the time you spend alone with Him be special, anointed, and holy. Learn to pray without ceasing, not looking for the “amen” to give you the end.
You will not walk in your anointing until you first sit in His presence. “But you have an anointing from the Holy One [you have been set apart, specially gifted and prepared by the Holy Spirit], and all of you know [the truth because He teaches us, illuminates our minds, and guards us from error]” (1 John 2:20 AMP).
God says he will lift or exalt us when we are humble. But the lifting is not like our flesh thinks, to make us higher than those around us. No, it is far more holy and special than that. He is lifting us up to Himself, up to where He is at, so that we would be blessed in His presence.
To be set apart, you have to let go. “Consecrate [set apart] yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. And you shall keep My statutes, and perform them: I am the Lord who sanctifies [sets apart] you” (Leviticus 20:7-8 NKJV).
Blessings to you,
Paul Balius
Bless you, my brother. Your messages always speak to my heart, edifying, encouraging and strengthening me in my walk with Jesus.
Thank you, I am so blessed to get this encouragement from you!
God put me in a heavy wilderness a few years back after he revealed to me a matter that would make anyone’s blood turn cold. It was demonic and involved one of our church leaders. I saw it materialize/transfigure his entire face right before my very eyes. It was dark and vile and even murderous In nature. It was the worst I had ever encountered in my walk with the Lord. And still to this day. I was instructed by the leading of the spirit to leave and never return. I was absolutely devastated, but had to obey what I was instructed to do. I grieved so deeply. It was then that God had me all to himself and I spent literal months and months in isolation with him in my secret place. As I began to climb what I refer to as Mt. God. He had me right where he wanted me. During this time of isolation, the spirit poured into me and became deeply intimate with our Heavenly Father. He began to teach me the deeper things of God and spoke his infinite wisdom into my spirit. I would pray and worship for hours as he began to raise me, train me, counsel me, correct me, edify me, equip me, show me his desires, revelation knowledge, mature me for my call as a seer, and provided much needed clarity. This call upon my life was and still is a heavy one. I didn’t ask for it, he selected me as only he is able. The breaking process is so very painful, yet necessary to fulfill this purpose. To see and know things about someone without having prior knowledge of the person placed within my path can be unnerving to say the least. It can happen in a flash, without a moments notice. Being spirit filled comes with a great responsibility I came to learn. Seeing in the spiritual realm through spiritual eyes, cannot truly be articulated in carnal words. It must be experienced. Why God chose me and set me apart, I’ll never know. I recently had a world event he warned me of, without any forethought, come to pass just recently and it really through me for a loop. I’ve never fit in really and isolate often. When I’m in his presence, prostrate before him, I never want to leave. I’ve found the lower I go before him, the closer I get to God. He gave me an open vision in 1974 of Heaven through parted clouds as an 8 year old little girl. The spirit awoke me in the middle of the night as my cousin slept beside me and I wasn’t groggy in any way. I felt led to stand up on the bed and look out of the window and before me in the sky was sheer glory of a majestic city with a tall wall surrounding it and an ornate gate. The structure in the forefront cannot be described. But the light and colors emanating from within this beautiful city was like nothing I’ve ever seen. I then bent over and shook my cousin awake and told her to stand up! I had something to show her. So she did. I pointed to the sky and said look Gina! It’s Heaven! Can you see it?!? She said she saw nothing, and I said it’s right there!! She again said she saw nothing and laid back down. Inside this city, I saw the tops of domed structures made of both yellow gold and clear pure gold much like glass that shined so very bright. The colors as they crossed in front of one another didn’t intermingle and change color, but stayed the same, unlike when we mix colors together here on earth. The Glory of the light permeating from Heaven was so very powerful and it drew me even closer to the Jesus I fell madly in Love with when I received him as a 5 year old little girl. All I did from that point forward was talk about my new friend Jesus to anyone that crossed my path. I was different and some friends avoided me because of it. All of my life, this has been the norm for me. I believe it was that night that God let me know he set me apart for his purpose and his vessel to be used by him. Even when I wandered into the world for a season, I didn’t fit in. I knew I was different. Even still, I hunger and thirst for him and can’t seem to get enough. He is my God. I once suffered for my Faith as I endured a severe persecution. It doesn’t matter who it was that did so, but my very life was in danger. I was told that if I spoke the name of Jesus, they would rip my tongue out. As I lay there, I closed my eyes to pray internally and asses the situation, that God gave me a divine visitation. As soon as I closed my eyes, instantly before me was a man on a dusty dirt path, dressed in sackcloth with a brownish colored sash on or whatever you wish to call it down on one knee leaning against a large boulder. In one hand he had a walking stick and had wild white hair kind of disheveled. His other hand was outstretched to me and it was then he said to me, “it is I! John the Baptist! And then he was gone. I knew he had baptized Jesus, but over the years the rest of his story had faded from my memory. God heard his name under attack and sent me a powerful visitation, if nothing else to let me know I wasn’t alone. God was with me throughout this horrific ordeal. It was so very evil. But I also refused to deny Jesus no matter the outcome. Modern day persecutions are a very real thing, right here in the good ol US of A! I know there are others that are too afraid to speak up out of fear of repercussions. But I’m not. So yes, suffering is part of the deal and it did nothing but push me further into the arms of our Lord. I became completely reliant upon God. Their plan backfired on what they hoped would push me away from my Faith and to the brink of suicide. I take joy in the fact that I suffered in his name. Being set apart is not an easy walk, especially when you add the mantle of a seer into the equation. God literally pulled me aside, alone with him and ordained me to this office. It was the most humbling experience I’ve ever had. Just the two of us. He’s still training and maturing me and I pray that I forever remain willing and teachable. And I’m regards to spiritual pride, falling prey to that is my biggest fear. I do not ever use titles. As it is God who gets all of the glory, each and every time. The fact that I shared it with you, was led by the spirit to do so. I apologize for the long message, but coming across your site was divine in nature. My only desire is to serve the Lord with my whole heart and bring home the lost sheep. And speak the truth. P I’ll leave the 99 to do so, whenever necessary. My life is not my own. I gave it to God to do whatever he pleases to advance his kingdom in these last days.
God bless you and thank you for taking the time to read the words I’ve written.
Your sister in Christ,
~Michelle~
Hello, my sister Michelle! I was so blessed to read through your message here. What a joy for me to get the privilege to meet a fellow servant of God. Some of the things you wrote here made my spirit leap as I could see just how deeply the Lord has touched your life. The Spirit-filled life is meant for us all yet so few choose to find it, and once it is before them, step into it that the adventure of a lifetime would begin. But you are so accurate when you say that “The breaking process is so very painful, yet necessary to fulfill this purpose.” That is the path to God, it is a bumpy path, but the one in which He can grow us. Another thing that really stood out to me was when you said, “Being spirit filled comes with a great responsibility I came to learn.” That is so true! The life God has for us is wonderful, but it is also one of great importance, that we would not squander all that He has given us. I hope someday you might email me at paul.balius@gmail.com so we could speak more. It would be a great honor to get to know you more. Blessings to you my sister, Paul