This broadcaster has 1263 show archives available on-demand.
Keep up-to-date with this broadcaster on social media and their website.
December 7, 2021 12:00 am
John 1613, when he the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever he hears he will speak and he will disclose to you what is the, he will glorify me there. People misunderstand this and say what the spirit must be less than the son and the sun less than the father since we read of the solid angle of the father.
This is what we call the quality and essence but subordination and function. There are three equally God, but you find a subordinate role that the Holy Spirit exalts Jesus Christ that we are all this is the paradox of the Christian life. The Bible tells us that we are free in Christ, but we are not yet fully free like we will be when were in heaven. So how does this impact our daily lives. The apostle Paul tells us that God has given us a gift that gift is the Holy Spirit today on wisdom for the heart. Stephen Devi is looking at Romans eight versus two through four. This message is called introducing the Holy Spirit pierced to go back in your Bibles to the book of Romans in chapter 8. I want you to notice first tumor we are given the special introduction by the apostle Paul for the law of these spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. We have just been introduced to the divine being who literally is taken, our hearts away is called a number of things in the New Testament. Here he is referred to with this magnificent title. These spirit in your translation to have a S the spirit life now thus far in the book of Romans, Paul is only rather subtly mentioned the spirit of God two times but in chapter 8 he will refer to him over and over and over again, for a total of some 20 time some really low back in our studies over these next weeks and address who he is and what he does and why does what he does and how we know is at work in our own lives, but for now at least, I want to know are talking about a real person were not talking about some mystical force were not talking about some ethereal power were not talking about some supernatural air some experience. We are talking about a person. He can be resisted. As Stephen said in acts 751 he can be grieved. As Paul warned the Ephesians in Ephesians 430. He can be clenched or stymied. We read in first Thessalonians 519. He can be obeyed.
First Corinthians 619 and 20.
He can be lied to speeder challenge the church member named Ananias when he asked him why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit. Acts 59 can be lied to the Holy Spirit can be insulted literally you can render it outraged. In Hebrews 1029 he is insulted he is outraged at the disregard of the unbeliever.
This text tells us who disregard the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ that insults him and that outrages is a real person divine member of the Trinity in our text Paul introduces him with this title, the spirit of life, a great expression that is when you think about it, the spirit tends to do just that. Does any he brings things to life. The very first introduction were given of the Holy Spirit is in Genesis chapter 1 verse two or were told that the spirit of God moved across the face of the earth. He was involved in the creation of life. Bringing the universe to life. The Holy Spirit also brings to life the heart and soul of a person's were generated were informed in the Bible in Ephesians chapter 2 that the spirit of fallen man is dead however also told that at the moment of conversion when a person transacts the gift of life by handing God's suit and trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation.
At that moment he comes to life by the agency of the spirit of God in John chapter 6 verse 63 Jesus said that it is the spirit who gives life, he has that unique role within the Trinity of bringing life, the things that are dead. Another enlivening work of the Holy Spirit is that he bring spiritual discernment to life. He literally brings the words of God to life in a way in the mind of the believer. He's come to life by the spirit so that it makes sense to them. Paul at this in mind when he wrote for who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of a man which is in them even saw the thoughts of God. No one knows except the spirit of God that we have received not the spirit of man or the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God which things we also speak cannot in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. However, a natural man that is an unbeliever does not accept the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him and he doesn't understand them because they are spiritually discerned. In other words, you can only try to explain so much to unbeliever because he just didn't get it unless the spirit of God awakens their conscience and give sight to their blinded eyes and insight to their spiritually close mind.
They just can't quite follow along is the spirit of God, who brings the life in the words of life mean life to the one who's come to live down.
Romans 82 were given a specific role of the Holy Spirit were told he did something actually in the past, we read that he set us free from the law of sin and death.
He set us free from the law of sin and death does not contradict what we've been talking about a Roman seven. I thought we were still bound as a work of the flesh. I thought we were still bound of the possibility of sin in the presence of sin of the corruption of sinful desire, we misinterpret chapter 7 to get the chapter 8 verse two were told were now free now as a matter fact we have the fuller picture here.
Yes, we are still bound.
The presence of sin in the lure of sin, so that the possibility of sin finds us at times performing sin and at the same time we are free. We are free to the spirit of Christ were no longer bound of the eternal penalty of sin and one day will be released from even the presence of sin. But even now at this moment we experience the liberation of the spirit of God. Satan cannot keep us, as though he would and could have God would allow many cannot keep us from enjoying the presence of God the Father in prayer. He cannot keep us from rejoicing in Christ, he cannot chain us so that we cannot serve in the cause of Christ. He can prevent us from experiencing the peace of God in the victory of our Lord in the hope of heaven, he can't rob us of the presence of God and who fills our hearts with the word of God. In fact if he could, but he can't. He would keep us from gathering today and singing at the top of our lungs of the glory of God and he can't stop it, and he hates it. He hates it when God said all you have to do is take maybe a little closer look at verse two where you find the truth implied with their carefully. Paul does not say the spirit of life has set you free from sin and death and say that as he says he set you free from the law of sin and death is a believer free from sin no is the believer free from experiencing death, no less.
The Lord raptors. The church will were still alive will all experience death.
There's a casket in our future. But what he does say is that the believer is set free from the law of sin and death.
What is he mean to be set free from the law of sin and death will everyone of us here experiencing one particular law that I have in mind is the law of gravity.
He didn't have to strap yourself in when you came in and set out so that you would somehow float up to the ceiling. The law of gravity keeps you in your chair keeps you down. Well, I can illustrate that here watch me as I hold up my Bible and I let it fall when I let go of it falls down to the pulpit. If I do it again. I wonder what will happen, it falls down to the pulpit. If I did this a million times.
Every time I let go. It would fall down to the pulpit. It's under the law, as it were of gravity on the 3 millionth time I can expect it if I should let it go to somehow to reverse the law to float to the ceiling though. Every time I let you know it's gonna fall to the open no matter if I do it 5 million times. However, many unless something happened in less I interrupt the law by introducing something else like my hand and then I let go of the Bible. I catch it a practice that is home so I could make sure that I caught it just right for you today.
I interrupt the law of gravity. With greater laws that were my arm and the strength of my hand has intercepted the law and it now supersedes because now when I dropped the Bible it still under the influence of the law of gravity because is not floating off of my hand, but it is being kept from falling all the way down because of this new law. You see, we are not under the law of sin which would cause us to ultimately be destroyed. We are under the law of the Spirit and it is a spirit of life knowing to this new law take effect if you go back and look at the very next verse following this introduction in this simple explanation were told, look for what the law could not do. We because it was through the flesh, God did sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh.
He says for what the law could not do what is it that the law could not do it could not justify you the law could not save you the law could not redeem you. It could not reconcile you only God could do that.
So the law can't do it, but God can through the spirit of life. Only God can clean you up. Only God can redeem you only God can reckons value to himself. So he did. Paul wrote what the law could not do, how to do it because on to say, God sent his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh not want to look at the very carefully called says that God sent his own son in the likeness of flesh, sinful flesh now what Paul did not say is that he sent the son in the likeness of flesh, that would mean that he really wasn't a man that he was a fully man and fully God to then say that he also does not say that God sent his own son in sinful flesh because I would mean he was a sinner you notice how he articulates the incarnation with great care. God sent his son in the likeness of sinful flesh so he could be an offering for sin see Jesus Christ had to be God, to pay an infinite penalty of your sin, but he had to be man so that he could experience something God doesn't experience and that is death, so Jesus Christ of the body so he could be crucified so that he could experience death so that his atoning work which involved death would give us a life and punishment, and wrath could be meted out upon him with the full expression of God the father. It was the innocent one, giving his life for the guilty one and the moment we accept the Lamb who was given an atonement for our sin as our substitute. As soon as you exercise faith in him alone in the spirit of life brings life to your spirit and your brought to life spiritual now on the heels of the special introduction and simple explanation. Paul goes on to give us a rather significant application. If I called you to come back to it time and time again.
I want you to notice verse four in order that the requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit. I don't make a common mistake that some do.
Paul is not contrasting here in this verse. Two kinds of Christian way.
One kind of Christian walks.
According to the flesh, and we have another kind of Christian, has her ducks all lined up, spiritually speaking, and they walk according to the spirit know Paul is an contrasting two kinds of Christian if you go back to verse because of that the requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, in the original constructionist is passive, which means this is something that is happened in us and not BIOS which is wonderful news because were not told to not only believe in Jesus now are supposed to go out to fulfill. Although all because what can we not do fulfill the law so he doesn't say it's fulfill BIOS circle that little word he says the law might be fulfilled in us, to passive work of God and something God is done for us now who are the us who does Paul have in mind, believers. These are the us you know who the believers are who've experienced this passive word of God by the spirit of life that has brought them the life here's who they are.
They are the ones who do not walk according to the flesh, but they walk according to the spirits is contrasting the believer with the unbeliever saving isn't the believer are admonished to walk after the spirit and not after the flesh.
Yes, there are other passages affect later on in this chapter, which leads me to say there are two sides to this work of the Holy Spirit.
Two sides to walking according to the spirit both passive and active. It is something that God does in us and it is something we choose to do as we walk with God walking after the spirit is something every believer every true believer will know doesn't mean you don't fail or sin or fall on the path which are on the path the spirit of God is brought you life and it's one thing to fall on the path as you walk after him and get up in confession and repentance and continue to walk and fall off the path you will find that you fall on the path as you walk according to the spirit and you confess your sin and walk after him. So let me put it to you this way as I put these two rather paradoxical ideas. The other when you surrender to the spirit of God, and you choose the walk according to the spirit, you discover that the spirit is planned. Your walk already and then that an amazing thing for something to happen in life and go� God had to do that the spirit had to arrange that we talk about divine appointments for those who are on our evangelism explosion teams going out and they go to a home and the person doesn't know Jesus Christ, and they give them the gospel and they prayed to receive Christ and I get the emails every Thursday morning telling me here's who accepted Jesus Christ this week and every week. People are coming to faith our evangelism efforts in ministry and those evangelism E teams leave saying we had a divine appointment. It was obvious God wanted us it's amazing how God works all the details out so you tend to live that way when you surrender to walk with him. He discover he is planned your walk already so in a way. There are two sides to walking according to the spirit. The positional side which is passive.
The references in verse four and the active side and other references such as Galatians were Paul says walk the commands to walk according to the spirit. One author wrote it this way everything that is a spiritual reality for the believer is also a spiritual responsibility. Consider this a genuine Christian will want to speak to his heavenly Father in prayer, but he is also commanded to pray. He is also responsible to pray a Christian is taught by the Holy Spirit, but he is also obligated to study the word of God in the learn from the word.
The Holy Spirit will produce spiritual fruit in the believer's life, but the believer is also admonished to bear fruit. You are told to receive the gospel and accept the Savior, and yet you're also told that God is already chosen you for Christ. Those trees are part of the amazing and seemingly paradoxical tension between God's sovereignty and man's will.
But they are both clearly taught in the word of God. What Paul is referring to here in Romans eight verse four deals with our position that you would ask the question what is that mean as a relates to our practice and you know you want to talk about that when you talk about next Wednesday but let me just at least say this understanding what the word walk means simply means you walk around.
You walk about you walk through every event of life conscious of the fact that the spirit of God is residing in you and empowering through you. Obedience to God the father you surrender to the spirit and then you rest in the Spirit's direction for the daily events of life, which means the walking according to the spirit is not that spiritual mountaintop alone.
It could be the mundane events of life. It can be among the common duties and responsibilities of life it is and all bells and whistles.
It's a walk thing about it this way.
What's one of the responsibilities of the Holy Spirit were told that the Holy Spirit's role. One of his chief roles is to exalt him. Jesus Christ. Jesus himself said in John 1613 but when he, the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.
For he will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever he hears he will speak and he will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify me there. People misunderstand this and say what the spirit must be less than the sun and the sun less than the father since we read of the son of Anglo of the father. This is what we call equality. In essence, but subordination and function. They are all three equally God three persons one God, one is not less than the other. But you find a subordinate role that the Holy Spirit exalts Jesus Christ promotes the ministry of Jesus Christ illumines the words of Jesus Christ and son we read obeys the will of the father. They work in perfect harmony together. Well, that gives us a little bit of a clue that you can know you are practically walking in the spirit. When you exalt and honor and glorify who Jesus Christ we seek to glorify and honor yourself not walking according to the spirit. When you find your life in the daily events of life, big nothing less then a desire to glorify God.
No matter how mundane no matter where you are. You are walking according to the spirit spirit seeks to glorify Christ.
Robertson McClurkin wrote it this way. He said imagine the president of the United States coming to speak at your local high school auditorium in the band strikes up as soon as he walks in hail the chief is the president and strides to the microphone. The spotlight follows is every step he arrives to the state steps up behind the microphone of the spotlight is there on suddenly the crowd as one rises and what's this, they turned their backs to the stage and pointing to the balcony erupted in applause for the fine performance of the spotlight operator absurd. Of course, but it illustrates the truth about the Holy Spirit. The spirit glorifies shines the spotlight on the word in the live in redeeming ministry. The sun, he points mankind of the Redeemer and highlights the work of Christ on their behalf to great truth to know that I will just want to go off on a little rabbit trail here and tell you that those movements who exalt the spirit who pursue the spirit along above all others who focus on the spirit who magnify the spirit they are missing it there applauding the spotlight operator. This job is to illumine the sun to exalt the sun to point our attention to the sun for the believer who wants to know if he is walking in the spirit. All he has to ask themselves whether or not his life is focused on bringing attention to Jesus Christ.
The wonderful thing about walking according to the spirit is knowing that God is done that work in us and we passively receive it as part of that redemptive process and then we actively submit to the work of the Holy Spirit in walking with them.
It's simply that it's a walk. You don't have to have it all figured out. I'm so glad that he didn't say Sprint in the spirit of the hard he said walk walk about.
Not panicking here and there, even though life is filled sometimes with panic, not in a frantic desire to please them all though life is filled with frantic pace. It's a daily walk one step at a time. In the spirit of God gives you just what you need for that next step.
Charlie Murphy has recently been released from prison for what is called white-collar crime steps what we call crimes of financial illegalities, he landed in prison with a sentence to serve around four years.
He served about four to have years God was at work, even before Charlie was redeemed and drawing into himself and measuring out his path and began the very first night as he was being placed in the cell he was given a Bible and he began to read it.
Call the sister and sisters, a member of this church. Her name is Jenny and Jenny been praying for him. He was an unbelievable religious he know all the verses, but he didn't really know Christ personally. Of course he got the Sunday school amount of truth, but it never invaded his hearts, his life and get everything that you can want in life.
Yes, sweet wife and two daughters, and suddenly is looking at years in prison God was opening his eyes and his ears. Jenny shared the gospel with him and after about an hour, tears coursing down his cheeks. He prayed to receive Christ as his personal savior came back into the holding place large room and somebody walked up again the Bible and he was placed in the cell and he set up most of the night reading his Bible newly been redeemed. He was so glad for that. In any other sense of dread. He didn't know what it meant. He didn't know what to do next. He didn't know what step to take in God was already at work the next morning and inmate walked up to him and seen him reading his Bible and Saturday I saw your reading your Bible onto the lead of Bibles that would like to start a Bible study intro so I will not leave Bible study done in my life.
On the much about the Bible universes here and there but certainly can lead and guess and you know you can lead it yet a Bible and we got some guys will be ready tonight will be waiting for you probably didn't know quite what to think came to supper and after supper. That inmate came up to him and said were ready ready for what ready for your Bible study is other walking along and Charlie saw about 12 inmates gathered waiting for him and he told this inmate is that I don't know what I'm supposed to say I don't know what to do. I've never let a Bible study of just learning the Bible and just become a Christian. The guy said well I I don't know either that I got this daily bread and the anime daily bread. These are want to read that half the guys in the Bible study couldn't read so Charlie got in there he sat down after introducing himself.
He opened the daily bread to the data in his eyes when them easily to those big bold letters of the bottoming of the thought for the day and he read the thought and he said they seem like it. It's always that I started at the top and I just read the verse and read the story and it had to do with becoming a Christian is that I got to the end of it and some of the guys said we want to do that and Charlie said you want to do what is it we want that we want to accept Christ like.
It said there Charlie thought his mind racing on how to leave them in this I can remember little bit of the prayer and and I know what I did but I don't know the gospel tell the Moran in that moment of hesitation over the intercom system. Charlie was paged to come to the office and meet with the nurse and thoughts of papers they said, guys.
Be back in a minute and he walked to the nurses station to fill out the papers and on his way back, he was met by an inmate walked up to him and said hey you know I'm cleaning out my room.
I'm getting out and maybe you'd like this in the head of a bookmark. The bookmark was printed by the Gideons and at the very top of it. It said how to become a Christian and all the steps were listed printed out on a card, so Charlie Murphy walked back now armed with the truth of his bookmark that great going back to the group and he said okay, here's what you do and you're the first thing that you're a sinner and he worked all the way down the points until he got to the sinners prayer and for men prayed to receive Christ Charlie Murphy was walking in the spirit God was prepared and God would prepare him and God gave him at the right time. The answers that he needed to have see this is the kind of spirit the lives within us.
You don't need to know everything you just need to know him when you know him, the spirit of life who brought you the life that you're willing choosing to surrender to throughout the course of the day. This one who glorifies the lawn and came to atone on our behalf. This one will bear fruit in and through our lives.
I'm glad you joined us today your own wisdom for the heart. Even Davey Stevens teaching through a series from Romans seven and eight called the war within this message is entitled introducing the Holy Spirit.
If you haven't already, I encourage you to install our app to your phone so that you can quickly and easily access all of our Bible-based resources. The wisdom international app will work with your smart phone your tablet or smart TV between now and our next broadcast, we'd really enjoy hearing from you.
We'd love to hear how God is using this ministry to build you up in the faith.
Please take a few moments and drop us a note. Our mailing address is wisdom international PO Box 37297, Raleigh, NC 27627 when you're right. Be sure and include any prayer requests that you might have. We'd be honored to pray for you and as I said we'd be encouraged to hear how these daily Bible lessons are encouraging you to give you that.
Again, write to us that wisdom international PO Box 37297, Raleigh, NC 27627. We have two more lessons to go in this series and will continue next time here on wisdom