The religious spirit is the enemy of grace. Are you flowing in God's grace, or are you at risk of coming under the influence of a religious spirit? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

What is the mysterious sevenfold working or anointing of the Holy Spirit? Learn how God wants to empower you for life and ministry through these overlooked dimensions of the Spirit's activity. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

This is a special double-length seminar on some more advanced issues in the healing ministry. In these sessions we review some basics about our giftedness from God, then discuss blessing and cursing, how can we develop a greater sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, and how we can see more people healed under our ministry. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

In our last session we looked at the concept of meditating in the Scriptures. Join us as we now explore the beautiful discipline of praying God’s Word. Have you ever prayed God's Word? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

We’re taking a couple of sessions now to share about our devotional life in God’s Word. That may not strike you as having a strong connection to “life in the Spirit,” but we want to be responsible builders in Christ. If you know anything about construction, then you know you can't go high if you haven’t gone deep. Plenty of people go high – but they don't stay high. If you want to walk on a higher level, you need to keep going deeper as well. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

Pursuing Christ is about living out, in an ever-increasing way, the First Commandment. Jesus said: “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment” (Mark 12:29-30). This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

Click here to view or download class notes for this session (PDF).Tonight we are kicking things off and kicking off the year with a look at fasting. Fasting has always been a powerful spiritual discipline for believers. Many can testify to its benefits, but in my opinion the most important reason to fast is to strengthen our relationship with the Lord! There’s nothing wrong with fasting to seek God’s help, but we should learn to see fasting as a way to connect with Him. We should see it as something that changes me, rather than something that causes God to do things for me. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

We wrap up “Life in the Spirit Course One” with a look at what it means to be spiritual and how we can be “edified” for the long haul. Life in the Spirit will return next month with a second course that covers new topics and goes deeper into topics we’ve already looked at. Click here to view or download class notes for this session (PDF).EXCERPT: The more you love, the more you will be like Christ, because God is love. When you don’t know what to do, love reveals the best strategy; love is the best strategy. The way of love is the highest wisdom. Paul says if we don’t have love, then, no matter how great our gifts, we’re just noisy gongs. Love will make you strong in faith. The Bible says faith works by love – and the great work of the Spirit is to produce the love of God within us. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

As our “Life in the Spirit” series draws to a close, we look behind the veil at the reality of the spirit world, and discuss the race of spirits that God has made called angels.Click here to view or download class notes for this session (PDF).EXCERPT: The Bible presents a universe in which there is not only a Supreme Being but also many non-material beings of different types. These beings are neither tangible nor visible, nor can they be communicated with, at least in the ordinary course of events. The Bible also presents a universe in which there is active evil, not just evil as the absence of good, but evil that is actively working. This is also offensive idea to many people. In modern society people will allow you to speak of psychological defects but not moral defects! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com

Continuing on with our “Life in the Spirit” series, you’ll enjoy this longer session in which we dig deeper into the ministry of prophecy today. How can we begin to move in prophecy and, if God speaks apart from His Word, how will I know it’s Him?Click here to view or download class notes for this session (PDF).EXCERPT: We can define New Testament prophecy as simply reporting something that God has spontaneously brought to your mind. It has its origin in the mind of God, not the mind of man. It’s not the same thing as preaching or teaching, which can certainly be anointed by the Spirit, but which results mostly from human preparation. The word “propheteia” in the Greek simply means speaking on behalf of another. In the New Covenant, prophecy is not equivalent to Scripture. They are not on the same level. Prophecy doesn’t carry the same authority as God’s Word. In fact, Scripture warns us that we know in part, and prophesy in part (1 Corinthians 13:9).In spite of how we commonly use the word prophecy in modern English, prophecy is not necessarily about foretelling things, but about “forthtelling”. That means speaking forth what God tells us, regardless of whether the message is predicting anything.The Bible says, “…he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men” (1 Corinthians 14:3). These are the three ordinary and customary purposes of prophecy in the Church: to edify (build up or strengthen); to exhort (encourage); and to comfort – not necessarily to predict the future. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nickuva.substack.com