Real Life (Part 3)
Led by the Holy Spirit
23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
Isaiah 9: 6 – 7
6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder.And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end
We have seen previously that if we are going to experience REAL LIFE as God intends – where the government of Jesus Christ exposes and displaces the powers of darkness – then we must be born of the Holy Spirit, filled with the Holy Spirit, and baptised in the Holy Spirit!
When we are born from above God breathes the spirit of life into us and we are recreated as he originally intended. God sowed his Son into the world in order to reap a harvest of many sons.
John 12: 23 – 24
1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins
Because our new life is spirit life it can only be lived one way – in the power of the Holy Spirit. Since we are born of the Holy Spirit we must be filled with the Holy Spirit, baptised in the Holy Spirit, and we must be led by the Holy Spirit!
Romans 8: 14 (Amplified)
14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
We have already seen that Jesus was born from above into a place and among people carefully selected by his Father. He grew and matured while living in Spirit-filled submission to the authority under which he had been placed. At thirty years old he was released into supernatural ministry when the Holy Spirit came upon him. He then began to call his disciples to follow him.
If you are being led then you are following. If you are following it is good to know that the one you are following knows where he is going. Jesus said that the pharisees and religious leaders of his day were blind leaders of the blind and that both the leaders and those who followed them would end up in the ditch! There are many leaders like this around today. They follow religious tradition or depend on intellectualism or are steered by cultural changes and moral relativism. They lead people into the ditches of legalism or license.
The only way that we can follow Jesus and be a continuation of his life, an amplification of his message, and an extension of his works is if we are led by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will always lead us into freedom. It is a narrow road that leads to life and he is the only one who knows the way. The reality is that he is the way!
John 16: 13 – 14
13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.
Jesus is our model for the Spirit-led life. If we have the same life in us that he had – if it is his life in us – then it stands to reason that we will be saying and doing the same things that he said and did. So how did he do it?
John 5: 19 – 20, 30
19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel…30 I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.
Jesus knew the character of his Father – he saw what the Father did and so he did the same. The better acquainted we become with the Father the more we will confidently follow his example and become involved in his works!
The fall of man came about through believing a lie regarding the Father’s character that insinuated that he was keeping something from man that was better than what man already had. The Father wasn’t trying to keep something from man but he was trying to keep man from something – death.
The truth is that the Father had provided the best of everything for man before he created him and had then placed him in his perfect provision. The only antidote for a lie is the truth and so Jesus came as the perfect embodiment of the truth concerning the Father. He said that anyone who had seen him had seen the Father. And everywhere he went he was doing good and bringing healing to all who were oppressed by the devil – who were living under the power of the lie!
Remember – the only power the enemy has over us is the power to deceive us and draw us out from under the protection of the truth – the shield of faith – and make us vulnerable to his stealing, killing, and destroying ways! We live in a fallen world that is susceptible to sickness, decay, natural disasters, freak accidents, etc. We need to understand that the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus – the truth as defined by Jesus’ life – has set us free from the law of sin and death! If we continue to live according to the higher law it will protect us from the results of the fall! Even death itself will be a choice that we make at the end of a full life, and will be nothing more than putting off our earth suit and putting on our heaven suit!
Sadly, much of what is religious continues to perpetuate the lie that God wants to hold out on us. That is why it is so important that we are not just born of the Spirit, but that we are also Spirit-filled, Spirit-baptised, and Spirit-led!
Jesus said that if we continue in his word then we will be his disciples indeed. We will be led by him and will know experientially – not just intellectually – the truth that makes us free!
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth – he comes to demonstrate in and through us the truth of God’s word. When you are baptised in the Holy Spirit something changes in relation to your understanding of God’s word. The word of God comes alive because it is no longer just words on a page or a set of principles or concepts – it has become a living word that can actually save, heal, and deliver! All of a sudden the ministry of Jesus is reactivated in our experience!
John 14: 19 – 21, 23 – 24
19 “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”…..
23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.
He told us to go into the world and preach the gospel of the kingdom – to heal the sick, to cleanse the lepers, to raise the dead, and to cast out demons. If we love him we will do what he says, and if we do what he says he will do what he said and manifest his glory!
Proverbs 3: 5 – 7 (Amplified)
5 Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. 6 In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. 7 Be not wise in your own eyes; reverently fear and worship the Lord and turn [entirely] away from evil
We are to be led by the Holy Spirit just as Jesus was. Everyone may not believe the message but those who do believe will receive the miracle of the manifestation of the truth that makes them free!
Psalm 111
1 Praise the LORD!
I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.
2 The works of the LORD are great, Studied by all who have pleasure in them.
3 His work is honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever.
4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and full of compassion.
5 He has given food to those who fear Him; He will ever be mindful of His covenant.
6 He has declared to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations.
7 The works of His hands are verity and justice; All His precepts are sure.
8 They stand fast forever and ever, And are done in truth and uprightness.
9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name.
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments.
His praise endures forever.
The word of God’s power declares the power of his works.
It is an unfortunate fact that only a fraction of those who hear what the word of God says actually take the time to invest their whole lives into believing for the fulfillment of that word. There are even those who take notes, say Amen, and whoop and shout in excitement over the message who never take it any further, just like Jesus explained in his parable of the sower. But the small number of people who truly delight in his commandments, and who get so stirred up at the possibility of the truth of his word coming to pass, and who zone out every other voice and every other distraction, and devote themselves to the study of his word and to the appropriation of every promise discover what it truly means to be blessed and be a blessing!
At a business conference I attended several ago the guy who organised it said that only one to two percent of the seven thousand attendees would actually do anything with the information they had received. Even though they took time to attend, to take notes, etc, etc. It is the same with those who attend church or go to Christian conferences. They listen to the testimony of those who have proven that the word works, and they would like it to work and produce the same results for them but they don’t have the oomph to apply themselves to it – they don’t love enough or delight enough or have enough of a desire to be blessed enough to be a blessing and a supernatural agent of change in this world!
If you are led by the Spirit you will be led into truth that will make you free in your mind, in your health, in your finances, etc, etc. And free people free people!
We are to be anointed with the same anointing as Jesus – to preach good news to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty the oppressed, and announce the season of God’s favour!
We are anointed to train and equip others – to make disciples and to multiply the blessing across the earth! To disciple nations! To restore truth! To expose the lie!
But it takes a love for God that encompasses all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our mind, and all of our strength – and a love for others that can only be ours when we are filled with the Holy Spirit and the God-kind of love that he brings!
Read the gospel accounts and see how Jesus was not born of the Holy Spirit just so that he could live a religious life; how he was not filled with the Holy Spirit just to produce fruit that was merely a blessing to those around him and occasionally caused them to comment on what a nice guy he was; that he was not baptised in the Holy Spirit just to enable him to perform a few miracles and build a successful ministry; but he was also led by the Holy Spirit to the places where the effects of his supernatural ministry could have the maximum impact and effect. Sometimes that began as a one-to-one encounter and other times it was before a crowd of thousands!
Will we bring all that we are and all that we have into the kingdom and allow the Holy Spirit to fill us, baptise us, and lead and direct us? The harvest is waiting! Remember – we are not here just to make converts but to make disciples! We are responsible to bring those we disciple to maturity and into the fullness of all that he has commanded us including water baptism, Holy Spirit baptism, and preparing and equipping them to do the work of the ministry, etc!
2014 is a year of greater glory – a year of greater manifestation of God’s presence and power. Jesus said that he will manifest his presence among those who keep his commandments to love God and to love people. It’s that simple.