There are two kinds of words that have developed through the ages: one according to the flesh, which is the letter; and the other according to revelation, which is the spirit. One of the defining characteristics of contemporary Christianity, and one that has caused numerous problems within the Church, is undoubtedly the letter without the spirit.

Many assume the role of spiritual guides with only a certain level of knowledge of the letter, confusing theological with spiritual understanding. Yet, as Brother Paul wrote, “the letter kills, but the spirit gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6).” The letter represents knowledge that puffs up rather than edifies, and human wisdom, even if religiously oriented, with all its limitations, believes it can master everything.

Such knowledge cannot heal. God gave the law to the people of Israel through Moses. This law was itself a revelation: it was the means by which “God made known (revealed) His ways to Moses (Psalm 103:7).”

Transcribed onto tablets and scrolls to be preserved for generations, it became a source of conflicts and doctrinal contradictions, leading to the formation of divergent groups. Theologians, not understanding either the Scriptures or the power of God, multiplied; and Jerusalem did not recognize the time of its visitation (Luke 19:44); they themselves (these theologians) nullified God’s purpose for them (Luke 7:30).

These theologians, ministers of the letter, did not understand the ways of God revealed to Moses and the prophets, contained in the book they boasted of mastering. It is therefore logical that the Lord said to them:

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life, and it is they that bear witness about me.” John 5:39

Even today, at the end of the ages, ministers of the letter abound, ensured by traditional theological schools. Some call themselves apostles and prophets, and the Church still deceives itself, feeding the illusion, and ignoring God’s purpose and thoughts. Nevertheless, from the foundation to the vision, everything is essentially spirit, not letter (2 Corinthians 3:6). The words intended and given to the “Ekklesia” are spirit and life (John 6:63). Every true minister of the Church is unmistakably distinguished by a divine call and divine depths. If you already have the call, ask, seek, and find the necessary depths for your ministry.

Theological depths have their place, but it is the spirit that gives life. A minister who is not only in name must demonstrate the Spirit and power. The demonstration of Spirit and power upon which Brother Paul’s preaching rested is indivisible. It cannot be of power without first being of Spirit. Once it is, it will also be of power.

The level of power a minister (or a church) can manifest is proportional to the depth of Spirit they can demonstrate. The numerous problems of the Church in this season stem from an issue that questions… What does it question? It is not the letter of the “men of God,” for there is no doubt that they have plenty of it. It questions what we ourselves should honestly examine: our depth of spirit. This is all the more important because only the spirit gives life.

No matter the extent of a man’s ministry and his presence on television, he will lose himself and many others if he only has the letter. It is well known that what does not give life surely kills. The minister who only has the letter is therefore part of the problem, not the solution.

Even the proselytism practiced by the scribes and Pharisees was vain and condemned more to hell, and that practiced by ministers of the letter today is no less so; for with their theologies, they fail to raise true disciples. Those they persuade have become, under their influence, mere fanatics, always learning and never able to arrive at the knowledge of the truth that liberates and sanctifies.

Many pursue the letter and the diploma, but how many seek the spirit? Yet it would have prevented the killings of the Crusades and persecutions, the elevation of the religious spirit at the expense of faith, the excessive attachment to human tradition by rejecting the revelation of the enlightening word, and the endless attempts to box God into a theology, among many other evils God’s children have suffered for so long.

In these end times, do you want to save the world for God? Do you want to lead God’s people? Enter your destiny? Help others grasp theirs? Then you need the spirit. Indeed, a lamp without oil can only cause embarrassment. The fruits of the letter without the spirit include, among other things, pride and arrogance. These things make us refuse to recognize others’ grace and our true level.

The letter without the spirit always generates superficial and carnal ministries. One will never be perfected by the work of a man (or woman) who only possesses the letter. One will never know true faith and the powers of the age to come, nor be plunged into the infinite depths of divine revelation through a minister who has not experienced it themselves.

One will be a mere miserable religious person, for the things of God are a sealed book to them. And even if it were unsealed, they do not know how to read it (Isaiah 29:11,12). The letter kills, but the spirit gives life.

Ministers who are only of the letter condemn and outrage God’s children all day long because they are themselves slaves of what they believe to master. They are like the Pharisees who could condemn the Lord’s disciples for eating heads of grain on the Sabbath, and the Lord Himself for doing good on that day. The letter kills, but the spirit gives life.

A sister whose husband had been living in concubinage with a voodoo priestess for twelve years was surprised to see him reappear and ask to be received back into her home. She went to consult the leaders of her congregation, who hammered into her phrases like: it’s your husband, you must receive him. She obeyed.

However, she did not feel free within herself to sleep with this man, whose true intentions and health status she knew nothing about. She again sought advice from her leaders on this matter. They ordered her to sleep with the perfect stranger, stuttering contemptuous and twisted verses. Submitting, the sister contracted HIV/AIDS. Indeed, this man had come only to transmit it to her; he has since disappeared.

A young sister whose mother had been sick for a long time, and whose father was a drunkard who did not care for his family, had found a small job after many years of suffering. Since she had to wear pants at work, this sister, who was very promising spiritually and ministerially; who had a rare grace for preaching; and who worked with children in her assembly, was excluded from all Church activities. Broken, she never recovered. The letter kills.

The letter also divides, but the spirit ensures the unity of the Body. The most beautiful unity that can exist. All its beauty lies in the diversity it comprises. The letter makes one intolerant and impatient, causing rejection of those whom the Lord Himself has welcomed and declaring impure and vile those whom He elevates, forgetting His own word:

“Whoever is not against me is for me.” Matthew 9:38

This text is an extract from the book “ INSIGHTS FOR AN EFFECTIVE MINISTRY ” written by Wiftherlin Léon.

We invite you to read the following article “PRACTICING CONSECRATION.”