Author: bonniefaurote

HOLY SPIRIT

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THE HOLY SPIRIT AS SPIRIT KNOWLEDGE

“…all that has been done by God the Father and by God the Son will be of no value to us unless the Spirit reveals these things to our souls” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, Feb 29thPM).

 “’What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him’—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit.  For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God”(1 Cor 2:9-10 ESV).

“…our conviction of the truth of Scripture must be derived from a higher source than human conjectures, judgments, or reasons; namely, the secret testimony of the Spirit” John Calvin (ref#113, p33).

“When the Holy Spirit…comes, he shall guide you into all truth.  For he will not be presenting his own ideas, but will be passing on to you what he has heard….” (John 16:13 TLB).

“God’s truth comes to us through three essential processes: revelation, inspiration, and illumination” Carol Ruvolo (ref#228, p70).

“Revelation involves the actual disclosure of God’s truth…” Carol Ruvolo (ref#228, p70). “By revelation is understood those truths made known by supernatural means, because they lie beyond the power of man to discover” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p102).

“Inspiration is concerned with the means and processes by which these truths are made known” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p102).  “…inspiration has to do with recording divine revelation perfectly and completely…” Carol Ruvolo (ref#228, p70).

“…illumination is what enables us to understand that truth” Carol Ruvolo (ref#228, p70).   “…The Bible can neither be accounted for nor interpreted but by His [the SPIRIT’s] guidance…Revealed truth can be known only through the Revealer” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p15, brackets mine).

FATHER, since human reasoning is my default way of thinking, I ask Your help that I may train myself to be aware of the SPIRIT’s activity in giving the Truth.  I recognize my head knowledge has no ability to spawn appropriate spiritual actions.

HOLY SPIRIT

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THE SPIRIT AS A GUARANTEE

“In him you…were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it…” (Eph 1:13-14 ESV).

“…in this word ‘sealed,’…is a message of safety and security in God’s love and power.  God sends the Holy Spirit as a preserving seal to lock in our faith, as an authenticating seal to validate our sonship, and as a protecting seal to keep out destructive forces. The point is that God wants us to feel secure and safe in his love and power” (ref: John Piper, Sealed by the Spirit to the Day of Redemption, https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/sealed-by-the-spirit-to-the-day-of-redemption).

“…By his Spirit he has stamped us with his eternal pledge—a sure beginning of what he is destined to complete”(2 Cor 1:20-22 MSG).

“…in most cases, the sealing of the Spirit is a…gradualwork.  It is a work of time.  The soul is placed in the school of deep experience and is led step by step, stage by stage.

The knowledge of self and of Christ increases,

deeper views of indwelling sin are discovered,

the heart’s treachery is more acutely felt,

the devices of Satan are better known,

the mystery of God’s gracious and providential dealings with His children are more clearly unfolded and better understood—

and all this may be arrived at through a process of deep and painful, yet sanctified, discipline…” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, April 14th).

FATHER, how precious it is to possess the SPIRIT.  For I know I need Him every minute of my unstable, always-changing life.  Move me to realize each trial You craft for me is so I might grasp the SPIRIT and find security only in You.

“How independent of outward circumstances the Holy Spirit can make the Christian” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, April 8th, PM)!

 

 

 

HOLY SPIRIT

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THE SPIRIT, THE REMEMBRANCER

When I know too many spiritual facts they get in the way.  I begin to ask GOD too many questions because I forget facts I once knew.  I end up depending on Him to answer prayers He’s already made provision for.  Facts tend to make me think I have all the answers. I fall easily into the responsibility to succeed because I know so much.  It causes pressure.

But, the “fact” is spiritual truth leaks out of me and I find myself in the pages of Andrew Murray’s book, “Abide in Christ.”  “You forget again; and instead of beginning each morning with the joyous transference of all the needs and cares of your spiritual life to the Father’s charge, you again feel anxious, and burdened, and helpless” Andrew Murray (ref#266, p85).

I forget again and again and again.  I forget I’m a new creature—one who will always be spiritual even as I default back to my natural anxious, burdened, and helpless state. But GOD has already made a provision for my lapses—the HOLY SPIRIT, the Remembrancer.

The SPIRIT causes me to recall it is GOD who works in me to will and work for His good pleasure (Phil 2:13).  I only need to yield myself to His working.

I have been soundly clued to get back to “yielding” instead of “doing.” The more I abide in CHRIST the less I will question anything.

“…abandon all anxiety about your growth and progress…trust…the Holy Spirit ever to remind you of this your blessed relation to Him [God]” Andrew Murray (ref#266, p86, brackets mine).

HOLY SPIRIT

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THE SPIRIT’S MOVEMENTS – EXAMPLES

“…God the Father has his eye on each of you, and has determined by the work of the Spirit to keep you obedient…” (1 Pet 1:1-2 MSG).

“Can you work yourself up into being an automatically loving person in every situation, to all people, consistently over time?  I doubt it. Can you try and try and try to be a joyful person to the point where you suddenly become joyful always, no matter what is happening?  No.  It is only as we allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in us—opening ourselves continually to His power and presence—that our very nature is transformed…”  Charles F. Stanley (ref#230, p62).

So, how do I know if flesh is moving me or the SPIRIT?  I can get up on Sunday morning and go to church; did the SPIRIT move me to do that? Maybe, but probably not.  I (flesh) just decided to do it (probably because it is a habit and expected of me).

Martyn Lloyd-Jones describes the moving of the SPIRIT this way: “…you are aware of the power of God dealing with you, surging and rising within you, and you are amazed and astonished….a wonder-working power active in you, moving, disturbing, leading, persuading, drawing you ever onward” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Nov 19th)?

I know the SPIRIT resides in me:

When a command materializes in my head and I don’t default to rationalization.

When my thinking is clear and my will is willing.

When I can observe clearly the enemy’s activity.

When I easily confess my sins and forgive the sins of others.

When I know the preacher is speaking directly to me.

When I possess the boldness to witness.

When GOD’s will becomes easy to perform.

When my prayer is answered before I am done praying.

When I write blogs and don’t get hungry or tired.

When I have endless patience while waiting for the LORD.

When I try to express inexpressible joy because I understand now that He lives to order me aright.

When His words are so hot on the page I’m reading I lift my hands in submission and praise.

 “…the gift of the Spirit always sets the heart singing. Its confidence is unwavering, its power is invincible, and its joy unspeakable” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p34). AMEN!

HOLY SPIRIT

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UNSEEN WORKINGS OF THE SPIRIT

“God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!  He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.…” (Eph 3:20-21 MSG).

“The Spirit is the Author of everything in us which goes out after God” A.W. Pink (ref#269, p129). “The Holy Spirit not only gives us the power from time to time to function in miraculous ways for the benefit of others, but He gives us the enduring, persevering, lasting power to withstand any persecution until God defeats our enemies” Charles F. Stanley (ref#230, p24).

“…the Holy Spirit imparts to us the divine energy of God to enable us physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually to do what God calls us to do.  This power is not only a burst of power to accomplish a given task, but a sustaining power that gives us the ability to persevere and to overcome. The power of God at work in us over time brings us to a place of great inner strength that others may perceive as confidence or boldness” Charles F. Stanley (ref#230, p72).

The SPIRIT’s work is continual.  And much of it in us is not recognized.  There are incidences in Scripture where GOD appears to erupt and surprise.  For instance Matthew in his gospel tells about JESUS calling His disciples.  Peter and Andrew’s reaction was: “…they immediately left the nets, and followed Him” (Matt 4:20 NASB). James and John’s reaction was: “…they immediately left the boat and their father, and followed him” (Matt 4:22 NASB).  And Matthew: “…and He [JESUS]said to him, ‘Follow Me!’  And he rose, and followed Him” (Matt 9:9 NASB).

One does not immediately give up his livelihood and follow someone he doesn’t know.  The SPIRIT had to be working in them beforehand.

Doesn’t He work the same in us?  He does not slumber or sleep therefore can surprise us by what He does through us.

Another great example of His unseen workings is the moment we commit to trusting CHRIST.  Where did that faith enough to do that come from? It certainly was not from our flesh deciding to love CHRIST for flesh is hostile to spiritual things (Rom 8:7). The answer has to be that the SPIRIT works, unknown to us, in our hearts until we possess enough faith to believe.

FATHER, thank You for the SPIRIT’s activity—that constant activity that I am unaware of.  SPIRIT, thank You.

HOLY SPIRIT

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BE FILLED

“…be filled with the Spirit,” (Eph 5:18 ESV).

“…we are leaky vessels, and have to be kept right under the fountain all the time in order to keep full…” Jim Cymbala (ref#161, p110-111).

“…Be filled”…literally rendered “be being kept filled.”…a command demanding conscious, continual action on our part (ref#228, p74).

“…it is one thing to have the Holy Spirit dwelling away back of consciousness in some hidden sanctuary of our being, and quite another thing to have that Holy Spirit taking entire possession of the house” R.A. Torrey (ref#223, p115).

“The fullness of the Spirit vitalizes natural powers, quickens dormant faculties, and reinforces capabilities…The brain gets a new quality of alertness, endurance and effectiveness.  The mind receives new powers of perception, intelligence and understanding.  The heart finds a new clarity of vision, a new simplicity of motive, and a new intensity of emotion.  The impossible becomes capable of achievement in the sanctified powers of the natural man” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p143-144).

“…seek to ‘be filled with the Spirit’!  Then your thirsting’s for God will be deeper, your breathings after holiness more intense, your communion with your heavenly Father closer, and your faith in Jesus stronger.  The indwelling of the Spirit is the root of all holiness; but the communication of the Spirit in the fullness of His gracious, sanctifying, Christ-transforming influence is the secret of a higher degree of heavenly-mindedness” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, Nov 13th).

“The work of God cannot be accomplished without the fullness of the Spirit, and everywhere God waits to give His Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.  It is His will that every believer should be filled with the Spirit, overflow in the power of the Spirit, and in all things prevail through the Spirit…God waits to fill ordinary people with extraordinary power, and to turn a baffled faith into a rapturous conquest” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p161-162).

“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13 ESV).

HOLY SPIRIT

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ABUSE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS

“Gifts are liable to abuse. In the Early Church they appealed to unspiritual men who desired them for carnal purposes and thought they had a commercial value.  They are still commercialized” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p147).

“…I…[Apostle Paul]could not speak to you as to spiritual men…for you are still fleshly….since there is jealously and strife among you…” (1 Cor 3:1,3 NASB).

“…carnal people were in possession of spiritual gifts and used them for carnal ends.  Spiritual gifts are no proof of spirituality…the gifts were…perverted to wrong ends or exercised in the wrong spirit….” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p148).

All Christians want GOD to move more and faster than He does.  We pray for spiritual gifts to help GOD.  We focus on spiritual success.  But we cannot override GOD’s will.

Pushing the issue of spiritual success pushes the HOLY SPIRIT behind us.  The great spiritual awakenings of history have fizzled out in a matter of years—even months because the pride of man thinks he can help the Spirit of GOD.

The truth is well-meaning Christians yearn for spiritual gifts so they can be viewed as great successful Christians.  They use GOD’s gifts to make themselves look successful.  It’s about them and not about GOD at all!

We all need to review why we desire spiritual gifts.   May I be loyal to the Lordship of CHRIST and loyal to the Word, for the “Word of Truth attests the Spirit of Truth.…the Spirit interprets, corroborates, verifies, and confirms the Word” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p148).

NOTE:  Genuine spiritual gifts may even appear as unsuccessful to our human minds.  GOD’s will is not our will.  It is so frightening how deluded we are!

HOLY SPIRIT

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THE GIFT(S) OF THE SPIRIT

“The greatest blessing we possess is the indwelling Spirit” A.W. Pink (ref#269, p99).  “The gift of the Spirit is the distinguishing feature of the Christian religion….In His indwelling Presence is the secret of all Christian experience, and in the abiding energy of His power is the dynamic of all Christian service” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p157).

“…love had been worked into your lives by the Spirit” (Col 1:5-8 MSG).

“…the Holy Spirit is promised under a twofold consideration: (1) As a Spirit of sanctification to the elect, to convert them and make them believers.  (2) As a Spirit of consolation to believers…” John Owen (ref#35, p359).  “…he [the Spirit] is described to us as a Fountain, whence all heavenly riches flow to us…” John Calvin (ref#113, p350).

“He maintains the life of grace in us….He is owner of the house, and not an underling…He commands and governs after His own will” A. W. Pink (ref#269, p100). My joy comes from being “…animated and motivated by God’s Spirit…” (Gal 5:16-18 MSG).

“Spiritual gifts are not the same as the gift of the Spirit.  The gift of the Spirit has been bestowed on all believers (John 14:16; Acts 2:38), and every member of the body should appropriate this gift” (Kenneth Boa, The Gifts of the Spirit,http://bible.org/article/gifts-spirit).  The SPIRIT when gifted produces fruit.  “Fruit belongs to character…fruit is the manifestation of cultivated life….fruit is a quality of life…fruit is a manifestation….fruit is implanted and is gradual development…Fruit is for all…” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p145-146).

“The gifts of the Spirit, on the other hand, are distributed as he decides to each person (1 Cor 12:11)” (Kenneth Boa,The Gifts of the Spirit,http://bible.org/article/gifts-spirit).  “Gifts are an evidence of the Spirit; but they are no proof of holiness…Gifts are according to the elections of the sovereign will of the Spirit of God;…Gifts are for service…Gifts are functional…Gifts are bestowed…Gifts may be given immediately and complete…gifts are for those for whom they have been prepared…We may covet gifts, but we must bear fruit.  Gifts cannot take the place of fruit” Samuel Chadwick (ref#195, p145-146).  The gift of the HOLY SPIRIT bears fruit; gifts of the SPIRIT can operate without producing fruit.

FATHER, it is my human nature to desire gifts more than fruit.  For the SPIRIT to produce fruit in me I must be patient and humble.  And since fruit defines a true Christian, I desire to be patient and humble over doing something extraordinary using the SPIRIT’s gifts.