The Presence of God

The scripture in Luke 14:12-14 had a deep impact on him. “Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." (Luke 14:12-14 NIV) Ivan’s circumstances did not allow him to put on a feast for the poor. However, one day he saw a beggar sitting on a bench. He invited him to a restaurant for a meal for which he paid. The man couldn't believe his ears and said that he had never in his life had such an invitation.

During a certain service where Ivan was invited to speak, the anointing of the Holy Spirit was truly on him. As he explained himself, I was “saturated with the Spirit of the Lord”. Those in attendance said that he was surrounded by a cloud. He didn't go sit on the pulpit but the Lord led him to kneel and to start praying. This was totally out of the ordinary. The presence of the Spirit of the Lord was so powerful that everyone fell down and started worshipping and glorifying the God of Heaven and Earth. What an encounter this was. There was no preaching during the service but all had the experience as in 1 John 2:27: “But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him” (1 John 2:27 KJV) 

Some misquote this scripture and use it to explain that they do not need to attend a church. The apostle John wrote this to warn against misleading teachings. “These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.” (1 John 2:26 KJV) We need to be taught by shepherds and teachers whom the Lord has appointed in an assembly. “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-12 KJV)

The presence of God could really be felt when being near Ivan. One time when he couldn't find lodging, he got a room in a hotel. He spent all of his time in prayer. Some people said that a strange fear took a hold of them when they were walking past his room. Others said that they became aware of the presence of God.

The Lord sent Ivan to a certain village but he did not have enough funds to travel. He never prayed for money because he was a child of God and God takes care of his children. Solomon did not pray for riches but for wisdom to rule the people. “Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.” (1 Kings 3:9-10 KJV) Ivan prayed likewise. When he finished praying he saw a roll of banknotes in front of him on the carpet. He thought perhaps an angel brought it.

Ivan had beautiful wavy hair and many people complimented him on this to the point that he became proud of his hair. “...God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble”. (James 4:6 KJV) He decided to cut off all his hair. The Lord said to him: “Your pride is not in your hair but in your heart”. It isn't only pride that the Lord wants to get out of our hearts, but also character traits such as hypocrisy, lovelessness, callousness, disbelief, lying, evil talk, disobedience etc.

There were a lot of renovations on the go during his time in the Faith Home in Pretoria. He sat down against a wall but God’s spirit told him to go sit somewhere else. Shortly after, a large part of the wall collapsed. “The LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life”. (Psalm 121:7 NIV)

While he was working for the Lord in Durban, he went to visit an East-Indian man. The man confronted him about his faith. He showed Ivan his god and the light that was continually burning for it. He said : “I can see my god, but your god does not exist.” Ivan figured that the only way to show his God would be to pray that He might reveal Himself. As he did so , the man suddenly started to tremble, fear gripped him and full of panic, he asked: “What is the meaning of this?” Ivan responded: “This is the God that I know, who is alive, and is not dead as your idol is.”

Ivan was a proponent of justice. A man wanted to give him a large sum of money but God said to him: “Don't accept it because it was obtained by ill gain”. The man was taken aback and admitted that he earned the money with dishonest practices.

Another time he walked past a flourishing business. God showed him that the owner was dishonest and earned his income by cheating and falsifying his books. He went inside and asked the owner if his books were in order. The man got very angry but when Ivan asked him a third time, he admitted that his books were doctored.