Tony Evans - The Frequency of Heaven (11/12/2023)
Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 2 that believers have received the Spirit of God—not the spirit of the world—as a receiver to know the deep things freely given by God, enabling the spiritual person to appraise all things through divine wisdom and possess the mind of Christ, while the natural or carnal person cannot understand or receive these spiritual truths because they operate on a different frequency.
Perhaps there have been situations in your life where you’ve had to raise the question, «Is there any hope»? Where things look so bad, so discouraging, so desperate that hope was lost. Perhaps there have been times in your life or in the lives of people you know where they wanted to throw in the towel, give up, quit. Where they were disappointed that led to discouragement that went into despair. The Bible has a phrase for that, that sense of hopelessness, emptiness. It’s called fainting or losing heart. Well, I wanna try to give you today that which will help you to make it when those times come in my life and your life and they will come if they have not already, where you feel like fainting, giving up, and losing heart and it all balls down to your vision, the nature of your eyesight.
He says, Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 16, «Therefore we do not lose heart». «Therefore we do not lose heart». What were some of the things Paul was dealing with? If you back up a few verses, he says in verse 8, «We are afflicted in every way». He says in verse 9, «Persecuted». He says in verse 10, «Carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus». In fact, he says in verse 12, «Death works in us». He’s going through some very negative realities and he’s got the audacity to say, «But we don’t lose heart».
So if you are here today or one day and you’re ready to throw in the towel, quit, give up, walk away, whatever level of despair, discouragement that you may be facing, causing the tears to roll down your eyes, causing you to lose sleep, causing you to live in aggravation, frustration, irritation, exacerbation, I want to say to you today so that you can not only use it for yourself but give it to somebody else, Paul’s statement, «We do not lose heart». Well, if you want to be in that position, you must improve your spiritual eyesight. You must be able to look at things differently as painful as the fainting may be. He gives three things that involve your eyesight. And he says, «If we can work on your eyesight, we can change your heart and your fainting, quitting, giving up situation».
Well, maybe I’m not talking to anybody today, maybe there’s nobody here that’s… any fainting folk here? Okay, I wanna make sure. The first thing he says in verse 16, «But though the outer man is decaying, yet the inner man is being renewed day-by-day». Mm, the first thing that you’ve gotta be able to look at is which man are you looking at? Spiritual endurance during troubled times means there needs to be a shift in your perspective. And that means you must prioritize the spiritual man over the physical man, okay. He just said, «While you’re getting older on the outside, you should be getting younger on the inside. While you’re growing old, you are to simultaneously be growing young».
If you’re growing old on the outside and growing old on the inside, you’re in bad shape 'cause you’re getting old twice. He says, «The inner man is renewed day-by-day». Renewing is the concept of making new, making fresh, bringing back to life. It’s springtime coming outta winter. It’s a renewal. He says, «If you’re going to not lose heart, you must make sure you’re getting younger spiritually, renewed». God says, «If you want to hang in there when the going gets tough, you must be renewed day-by-day». Why? Because inside of you, verse 7 says, «But we have this treasure in earthen vessels». Inside your physical frame is a treasure chest and that treasure chest is the spiritual man.
The Receiver Installed by God
If you’ve come to Christ, you have a new nature inside of you that wants to stay young, doesn’t wanna get old. In fact, it wants to get younger as you get older. But he says that «the way this happens is day-by-day renewal,» you see that in verse 16? He says, «Our inner man is being renewed day-by-day». If the inner man is not daily fed, the renewal doesn’t take place and if the renewal doesn’t take place, you’re not getting younger on the inside, which means you lose the capacity to handle the problems on the outside.
So if you do not see the spiritual man, he spends the first 9 verses of chapter 5, we won’t go into now. I’ll read verse 1, «For we know that this earthly tent,» which is our house, our body, «Is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in heavens». He says, «This building is gonna tear down and one day it’s gonna close up but you have another building that will keep you young, your eternal body that God is preparing for you in glory, but it wants to be connected to a young spirit». And he says, «That only happens if there is a day-by-day perspective».
So the question is, what did you spiritually eat today? Or do you not remember eating since last week? Then you’re not being renewed because you’re not giving the Holy Spirit what he needs to feed on in order to renew your human soul and human spirit. So the first thing he says is, «If you’re going to cope with chaos, if you’re going to cope with the confusion, if you’re going to cope with the difficulties, that’s going to happen because day-by-day you are feeding the spiritual man with the Word, with prayer, with bringing God in on the decisions of the day informally». In other words, it’s this daily mindset, orientation, viewpoint that you are operating by. He says «day-by-day,» there’s gotta be a consistency to it if you’re gonna stay young spiritually.
The Frequency of Heaven
Now, if you’re a believer, you have one, but if a receiver is turned off, you don’t get a picture even though you have the capacity to get a picture. Every believer has been given the capacity of the Holy Spirit to speak to the human spirit, to talk to the soul so you can see spiritual reality. But because we do not operate that way consistently, we’re often looking at a blank TV screen, we’re not getting a picture. Paul talks about this in detail. In 1 Corinthians chapter 2, where he informs us about the frequency of heaven. He says in verse 9, «For just as it is written, things which eye hath not seen, ear hath not heard, and which hath not entered into the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him».
Now first when you hear that, you might think he’s talking about heaven but look at verse 10, «For to us God revealed them through the Spirit». So he’s talking about something that God has revealed, not something that is awaiting us in the sweet by and by. He’s talking about the illuminating work of the Spirit to give us the frequency of heaven, the invisible wave from up there, what God has revealed through his Spirit that allows the receiver to translate it to your life. We’ll tell you how as we go along. He says, «For the Spirit,» verse 10, «Searches out all things, even the deep things of God». God’s Spirit, the third member of the Trinity has access to God’s database.
Verse 11, «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». He says, «The Spirit knows the deep things of God,» because the Spirit is the third member of the Trinity, he is God and so he knows the deep things of God. And of course God has all knowledge about all things because he is omniscient, full knowledge and the Spirit knows that. So since the Spirit knows all that God knows, then to get correct information from God you have to be in touch with the Spirit 'cause he’s got the information.
Let’s continue. «Now we have received,» talking about Christians, believers, «Not the spirit of the world,» this is very important, stay with me here, «But the Spirit who is from God so that we may know the things freely given to us by God». I need to read that verse again, «For we have received,» every Christian has received the receiver, «Not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who,» 'cause he’s a person, «Who is from God so that we may know the things freely given to us by God». That verse is pregnant. If you want to know the things that God has to say, you cannot be operating from the spirit of the world, you see that? Says, «We’ve not been given the spirit of the world,» that’s not what God gave us, he gave us the Spirit that is from God and the beautiful thing about this, he says, «It’s free».
Well, when we learn, when you and I learn increasingly, progressively, ongoingly, to operate by means of the Spirit, things get clearer. This is called illumination. John says this in St. John chapter 14, verse 17, «That is the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see him or know him; but you know him because he abides with you and will be in you». He says, «The world can’t get this information». So if you’re not operating with the receiver that God has placed in you, you don’t get the information either because you’re not operating on this receiver, what he calls the Spirit of truth similar to what he’s saying here.
Our goal today is to increase, turn up the dimmer switch, our ability to pick up the frequency of heaven. And so he says, «You have the Spirit, you have receiver, you receive». He goes deeper verse 13, «Which things we also speak not in words taught by human wisdom,» watch it, «But in those taught by the Spirit comparing spiritual thoughts with spiritual words». He says, «You cannot get this data, this information, this signal by human wisdom». Meaning, man’s thinking independently of God. Human wisdom is the perspective of man independently of God. The receiver won’t work, the new receiver won’t work, won’t come on because it’s not given to human wisdom.
So the moment you bring man’s viewpoint into the discussion that is contrary to God’s viewpoint, your receiver shuts off. You don’t cancel its existence 'cause the Spirit of God is in you, but it shuts down. One of the reasons why we don’t pick up the signal, is it has to keep shutting down every day because we appeal to human wisdom. We go to man’s thinking independently of God. And we do this on every subject known to man. We do this on race, we do this on gender, we do this on knowledge, we do this on education, we do… you pick the subject, we do this on relationships. We quickly go to man’s wisdom, human thought. He says, «Once you do that, once you do that, you have placed yourself in antithesis to God’s perspective».
He says the way it works is you compare spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. Meaning, you must bring your thinking in line with God’s thinking. Spiritual words, what God has to say about it. God has installed in you and me a new software and that software is designed to run on his receiver and only his receiver. And whenever information is brought over to that receiver that is not consistent with God, it is booted, it is rejected, it is denied. The wavelength shuts off and you cannot receive because that’s not what he gave you. In fact, it’s worse than that, verse 14, «But a natural man or woman does not accept the things of the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually appraised».
The Natural vs. Spiritual Person
When you and I were born we were born with a defect called the sin nature. It’s like a mirror that’s been cracked and distorted. Every person born is born with a cracked soul because they’re born with a dead spirit. When a person is converted that’s the natural thing 'cause it’s natural to every person born. When a person accepts Christ they are converted so that the Spirit, the receiver, comes alive in order to communicate to the cracked soul 'cause everybody’s born with a cracked soul, but this new receiver can send data to the cracked soul. But the natural man does not have this receiver. So the natural man operates with a cracked soul that doesn’t pick up a divine wavelength. He can’t pick it up. He says, «It cannot,» he cannot understand it.
Now the problem is that a Christian can function naturally. That’s why chapter 3, verses 1 to 3 calls him carnal or fleshly Christians. He says, «The natural man cannot receive the things from the Spirit of God». Verses 15 and 16, «But he who is spiritual,» not natural, not carnal, chapter 3, he says, «I, brethren could not speak to you as to spiritual men». Brethren, you’re Christian, but I can’t talk to you like you’re spiritual. «But as to men of flesh, carnal as to infants in Christ». «I wish I could give you this spiritual stuff, but y’all are Christians with your receiver off». Did you know you could be in church with your receiver off? Because you’re still functioning naturally. He says, «But you who are spiritual,» who is a spiritual Christian?
A spiritual Christian is a man or woman who consistently operates from a divine frame of reference. Let me say that again, a spiritual Christian or a spiritual person is a Christian who consistently operates from a divine frame of reference. In other words, they want to know God’s perspective upfront as a normal way of operating. Now, we don’t do it perfectly in our humanity, in our limitations, but the idea is to do it progressively. He says, «You who are spiritual, who consistently operate with the receiver, God’s framework in mind,» he says, «Appraises all things». He says, «The spiritual man has the ability to see deeper than the external,» like a doctor using an X-ray machine. And then he says «all things».
In other words, there is no category that’s exempt from the appraising work of the Holy Spirit, why? 'Cause he’s got a Google search to the whole nature of God. In other words, you can’t inform him. He’s uneducable. Since God is uneducable, he gives information he doesn’t receive it. So he says, «The Spirit appraises all things». There is no category exempt, but that’s not all he says. He goes on to say, «Yet he,» the spiritual person, «Is appraised by no one». Hello, he says, «The spiritual man understands all things but folk don’t understand him». Non-spiritual folk can’t figure out spiritual folk. And the reason why, is y’all not listening to the same station. One group is on AM and another group is on FM, and those are two different frequencies. He says, «But the spiritual man,» he’s not appraised, he’s not fully understood by the natural man or the carnal Christian who is functioning as a natural person.
And then he brings it all home in verse 16, «For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him»? Okay that goes back to Isaiah 40:13, «Who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him»? The answer obviously is, well, nobody can teach God anything. And here it is, here it is. «But we,» Christians who are spiritual. Well, even if you’re not spiritual it’s true, you may not be using it. «We have the mind of Christ». He brings it all home here. Every Christian possesses the mind of Christ like every human being has a brain. Okay, let me say that again. Every human being has a brain, every Christian has the mind of Christ.
What does the brain do? Send signals to the body about how it should operate. The brain tells the hand to move, the leg to move, the mouth to speak. When there is a stroke, when there is an infirmity of the brain, the data, the frequency is not given to the body at a level that the body can respond to it. There has been a breakdown in transmission. You have, every Christian, the mind of Christ. It’s been planted in you. What the brain is to the body, follow me, the mind is to the soul. It dispenses data, frequencies so that the life gets information from heaven into the satellite of the soul, from the receiver of the Spirit which you have received, which is the mind of Christ. Is that you now begin to look at life as Christ would look at it. So you literally begin to think God’s thoughts after him.
Operating on Heaven's Frequency
Now, why is this important? Because where you pick up the signal is in the mind, in the mind. I don’t just mean the brain, the mind is the information center of the soul like the brain is the information center of the body. So what God does is he shares his thoughts with you. He brings his thoughts into your thinking so that you begin to think as he’s thinking because the two of you are thinking alike at the same time, because you’re on the same wavelength with the receiver. But the moment you start AM and FM-ish, jumping frequencies, you’re shutting it down, and the system is not continually working.
You have the mind of Christ, the capacity to think God’s thoughts after him. They will always be true with his Word, but they will be applied in your life. You have the mind of Christ. There is a frequency from heaven that informs your thinking. And he says, «When it informs your thinking,» back to verse 9, «You will see things that I cannot see». He says, «You will hear things that ear cannot hear, and you will perceive things that have not entered into the heart of man». In other words, things you wouldn’t naturally have come up with.
So this is not talking about physical 'cause you’re seeing things I can’t see, you’re hearing things ear can’t hear, and you’re perceiving things that your humanity can’t perceive. He means, he’s giving you a frequency from another realm that goes beyond the physical but enters the mind. The Bible calls it the renewing of the mind. You begin to think God’s thoughts after him. As you apply national news based on his Word, to your local situation, «God, I’m in touch with your Spirit, I need you to appraise this».
The Spirit of God does all that 'cause guess what? It deals with all things because Paul says, «Then I’ll know like I am now known». He says, «I now look at life through a glass darkly, but on that day I will know as I am known». So there will come a time when you won’t have to wonder, you won’t have to search, you won’t have to deal with invisible wavelength because then face to face you will see them. But in the meantime, you got a receiver that’s been paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ. So why don’t you keep it on and use it so that you can get all the benefits of high level communication with Almighty God.
As I drove around the Rocky Mountains, I would often lose signal, signal from the radio, signal from the phone because I was cut off from being able to communicate with the towers that would provide me the ability to hear, to text, to talk. As we live our lives on earth, we can get separated from the frequency of heaven and not get the sounds from above to guide us in our earthly journey here below. But the frequency of heaven is designed to be picked up by God’s people because it’s located by something God has placed inside of you to pick up the glory of God through the work of the Spirit in the soul of man, so that you can actually hear heaven speak as you live your life on earth. Let’s find out what that frequency sounds like and how to stay in touch with it.