You have all heard me talk about Smith Wigglesworth. He had a major healing ministry in the early to mid 1900's. In my opinion, he was one of the greatest eagles to have ever walked this earth. If God has a hall of fame, this man will definitely be in it. The only book he had ever read was the Bible.
One of the main secrets to his incredible healing ministry was his high level of faith. On a scale of 1-10, he had a perfect 10 - and that is why there were so many mighty miracles in his ministry. He was called the "APOSTLE OF FAITH" because of his high level of faith. He believed everything he read in the Bible and was not afraid to push the envelope with God. One of his favorite sayings was: "If the Spirit doesn't move me, I'll move Him."
I recently was reading one of my books on his life when I came upon a message he gave to some younger people. As soon as I read it, I felt it was a word from the Lord. I do not know if he himself was aware of it, but I believe he received a prophetic flow from the Holy Spirit on this message.
He is giving a message on the POWER of the word of God. I'm going to type this out for you because I would consider this a "classic statement" on how powerful the Bible and the individual Scripture verses really are. Here was the message.
"Fill your head and your heart with the Scriptures. Memorize passages from the Word, with the name of the book, the chapter, and the verse, so that you can quote the Scripture correctly in addresses or in open-air meetings.
As you do this, you are sowing in your heart seeds, which the Spirit of God can germinate. He can bring to your remembrance from time to time that which you have once memorized. You must be so soaked with the Word of God, you must be filled with it, that you yourself are a living epistle, known and read of all men.
Believers are strong only as the Word of God abides in them. The Word of God is spirit and life to those who receive it in simple faith, and it is a verifier of all who own its sway. Know your Book, live it, believe it, and obey it. Hide God's word in your heart. It will save your soul, quicken your body, illumine your mind. The Word of God is full and final, infallible, reliable, and up-to-date, and our attitude towards it must be one of unquestioned obedience.
If a thing is in the Bible, it is so; it is not even to be prayed about; it is to be received and acted upon. Inactivity of faith is a robber, which steals blessing. Increase comes by action, by using what we have and what we know. Your life must be one of going from faith to faith."
He had 3 other "pet sayings" which I feel are really catchy. These are true words of knowledge and wisdom.
"Great faith is the product of great fights." "Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests." "Great triumphs can only come out of great trials."
The Bible is referred to as the seed of God. Like he says, when you read the Bible, the individual Scripture verses are going into you like seeds. The Holy Spirit will then take the knowledge that is in those verses (seeds) and start what he calls the germination process.
In other words, the Holy Spirit will start to produce fruit and Godly change into your personality and life. But the Holy Spirit always needs knowledge to work with and the individual Scripture verses give Him the knowledge in which He can start the molding and transforming process within you. It's the Word and the Spirit working together that will start the transformation and sanctification process within each person.
For those who would like to read a good book on this man, there is a small 157 page paperback book titled "Smith Wigglesworth - Apostle of Faith." The author is Stanley Howard Frodsham. You can click on the link and order it from Parable.com Christian bookstore online. It talks about all of his "secrets" and a lot of the unbelievable healings that he had in his ministry.
In addition to the healing ministry that he had, he also was a powerful evangelist and won many souls to the Kingdom of God. He traveled throughout most of Europe and the United States.
In all my research this man, in my opinion, may have been one of the greatest eagles to have ever walked this earth. He truly tapped into the real power of God and God used him mightily in getting people saved, healed and delivered.
The funny thing about him is that most Christians have never heard of him. He was non-denominational. He did not belong to any one Church or denomination and he went wherever the Holy Spirit would lead him. He perfectly followed the leadings he received from the Holy Spirit on a daily basis as to where he should go, what he should do, who he should see, etc.
They say his second secret, besides his high level of faith that was responsible for all of his success, was his ability to mesh with and follow the leadings of the Holy Spirit on a daily basis - and that is what being a real eagle for God is all about. Eagles have to learn to fly on strong wind thermals in order to be able to fly to heights that no other bird can - and Eagles of God have to be able to mesh with and follow the leadings and directions of the Holy Spirit if they want to accomplish great things for God. That is why I call this man a True Eagle of God - because he was able to master the skill of being able to read and move with the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.
Notes - "Smith Wigglesworth - Apostle of Faith" by Stanley Frodsham, Page 111.
Article written by Michael Bradley of Bible Knowledge Ministries. Their website is a resource of Bible Knowledge, articles, commentary and teaching. Smith Wigglesworth on the Power of the Word of God can be printed out on their website.