Spiritual Receptivity (it's not digital or analog, it's spiritual)

Let any man turn to God in earnest, let him begin to exercise himself unto godliness, let him seek to develop his powers of spiritual receptivity by trust and obedience and humility, and the results will exceed anything he may have hoped in his leaner and weaker days. (p. 66 The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer)

What a beautiful thing to be tuned into God! Can you imagine having our spiritual bunny ears raised in such a way that we catch God's transmissions throughout our lives, that we are constantly aware of what He is doing. But is it really possible? Do I really think that God would let me get tuned into His station? (And I'm not talking about TBN.)

Upon studying John 3:1-21 and I Corinthians 1-4, a thought that has been gnawing at my soul for a while now is starting to consume me. If the kingdom of God is only visible to those who have been born again, and if I can only enter that kingdom by being born of the water and the spirit, then I have to decide whether I can see this thing called the kingdom of God. And according to Paul in I Corinthians 1-4, the station that this world is picking up, wisdom, God calls foolishness, and the station that God is sending out, the cross, the world calls foolishness. So what are we more receptive to, the flesh or the Spirit? Because that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Take a moment to consider what you "see." What are you most receptive to? Up until a few years ago, I was way more receptive to ESPN, pornography, crude humor, "doing" church, and things that this world calls wisdom than to the power of God, Jesus Christ. Recently though, I've adjusted my dial. The more I die to my own desires, my own wisdom, the more I "see" the kingdom of God as a reality. I hear it in my conversations, I see it in those around me, I speak it to my children, I experience the great joy of knowing my Creator and my Redeemer! I find that I don't want to change the channel, that I only want to be tuned in to whatever God is putting out. I WANT to read His word for an hour longer, sing one more song to His glory, clean the house to show my wife I love her, submit to authorities, be a servant of all. I find that when I am tuned into the power of the cross, I want the things that He wants. And in this I find great joy and He gets all the glory and the honor and the praise, forever and ever, Amen.

So what, does this mean for preaching? Well, what if the preacher had his spiritual receptivity cranked up? And what if the church had her spiritual receptivity cranked up? What if we were all tuned into the same station when God gathered us together? Can you imagine the beauty of that? When the Spirit spoke His words through me, it would illicit feelings of great joy from deep within you. I would be able to perceive the works of God being wrought in you and my joy would be made complete. God would be speaking and moving and prodding in magnificent ways. I want what Paul talks about in I Corinthians 2:6-13:

"Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words."