Monday, January 25, 2010

By My Spirit


Then he said to me,
"This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying,
' Not by might nor by power,
but by My Spirit,'
says the LORD of hosts.

Zechariah 4:6 NAS


By My Spirit

One of the most divisive issues
in the church of Jesus Christ today
has to do with the person of the Holy Spirit
and how His role is interpreted amongst believers.

It is my belief that this issue
is due to the fact that the enemy of our souls
understands that if we as a body
ever began to flow in unison with this regard,
the resulting power of the church
would run havoc through the lies and strongholds
that hold so many captive to the voices of darkness and rebellion.

Because of this one of the greatest demonic assaults
comes against the churches beliefs and understanding
of the work of the Holy Spirit
as it relates to the saints of God.

Jesus is said to be the firstborn of many brethren.

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined
to become conformed to the image of His Son,
so that He would be
the firstborn among many brethren;
Romans 8:29 NAS

What does that mean?
It means that we are to emulate the life of Jesus
as he walked the face of the earth as a man.

We are to be like Jesus both in character (the fruits of the Spirit)
and in power (the gifts of the Spirit).

Hey, wait a minute, did you say man?

Yes I did.
Here are some facts about Jesus before we go on.

1. Jesus was fully God, and fully man.
Jesus by His virgin birth, was totally man
yet He was totally and completely God.

2. Jesus gave up His rights.
He willfully laid aside all of His rights and privileges as God
while He was alive here on earth.

He came as the “last Adam”
to fulfill all He created the first Adam to do on the earth.

5Have this attitude in yourselves
which was also in Christ Jesus,
6who, although He existed in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant,
and being made in the likeness of men.
8Being found in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:5-8 NAS

45So also it is written, "The first MAN, Adam,
BECAME A LIVING SOUL "
The last Adam became a life-giving spirit
1 Corinthians 15:45 NAS

47The first man is from the earth, earthy;
the second man is from heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:47 NAS

Jesus put His trust in God
from before He was weaned.

9Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb;
You made me trust when upon my mother's breasts.
10Upon You I was cast from birth;
You have been my God from my mother's womb.
Psalm 22:9-10 NAS

Psalm 22 begins with the prophetic utterance:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
then it goes on to say,
“They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.”

So we can clearly see that it is Jesus that is talking
through the words of David,
foreshadowing His future at Calvary.

13And again, I will put my trust in Him
And again, behold, I and the children whom God has given me.

Hebrews 2:13 NAS

This scripture is talking about Jesus.

23"BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD
AND SHALL BEAR A SON,
AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,"
which translated means, "GOD WITH US."
24And Joseph awoke from his sleep
and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him,
and took Mary as his wife,
Matthew 1:23-24 NAS

We can see a little piece of Jesus’ life
from where this scripture was taken.

14"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign:
Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son,
and she will call His name Immanuel.
15"He will eat curds and honey at the time
He knows enough to refuse evil and choose good.
16"For before the boy will know
enough to refuse evil and choose good,
the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken.
Isaiah 7:14-16 NAS

Note that Jesus was eating curds and honey;
that’s baby food during biblical times.

At that time when He was a baby
he knew enough to choose good over evil.

Does God need to make a choice between good and evil?
No, of course not!
This indicates that Christ was fully a man.

In Jesus choice of good over evil even as a babe
there is a huge implication.

Jesus had the right to choose,
just like us,
just like the first Adam.
Jesus was not a robot,
He also had a free will.

We see Jesus maturing in the eyes of God and man in Luke,
both as a child and adolescent in the Temple.

40The Child continued to grow and become strong,
increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.
41Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year
at the Feast of the Passover.
42And when He became twelve,
they went up there according to the custom of the Feast;
Luke 2:40-42 NAS

46Then, after three days they found Him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
both listening to them and asking them questions.
47And all who heard Him
were amazed at His understanding and His answers
Luke 2: 46-47 NAS

Don’t miss the point here
that Jesus was in the temple
listening and asking questions.

Here in the Temple
the Living Word of God,
was learning the Word of God.


Remember there were no Bibles,
the Torah scrolls were only found in the Temple
and the young boys would come to glean from the Rabbi.

52And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature,
and in favor with God and men.

Luke 2:52 NAS

Those who heard Him were amazed
because they knew him and His family.
After all was this not the carpenters son?

54He came to His hometown
and began teaching them in their synagogue,
so that they were astonished, and said,
"Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?
55"Is not this the carpenter's son?
Is not His mother called Mary,
and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?
56"And His sisters, are they not all with us?
Where then did this man get all these things?"
Matthew 13:54-56 NAS

If Jesus was both God and man while he walked the earth,
would He have to grow in wisdom, understanding and stature?

No. It is clear here again
that Jesus was fully man when he walked the earth.

He was learning the ways of God.
Yet he was sinless.

Jesus was learning the ways
of both His human and spiritual Father –
Joseph the carpenter and God the Creator.

8Although He was a Son,
He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.
9And having been made perfect,
He became to all those who obey Him
the source of eternal salvation.

Hebrews 5:8-9 NAS

Jesus spent His early life
learning and understanding the Word of God.

This was the foundation for His later ministry.
Recall that when He was led into the wilderness
by the Holy Spirit
to be tempted of the devil,
each time He was tempted
His reply was, “It is written.”

In the Gospel of Mark,
He said to the Pharisees and teachers,
“Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites;
as it is written.”

Over and over we see Jesus quoting the Word of God.

The Word of God in the flesh, (John 1)
had to learn the word of God while in the flesh.

Jesus walked the earth as a man
so that He might be an example to us
that we can walk as men and women of God as He walked
.

Jesus, the pattern Son of God
is the example of the working
of the Spirit of God in humanity in an unhindered operation.

21For you have been called for this purpose,
since Christ also suffered for you,
leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,
1Peter 2:21 NAS

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined
to become conformed to the image of His Son,
so that He would be
the firstborn among many brethren;
Romans 8:29 NAS

15"For I gave you an example
that you also should do as I did to you.

John 13:15 NAS

If Jesus had walked the earth as God,
then it would be impossible for us to follow His example,
but because He walked as a man,
we are able to follow His example.

The Importance of the work of the Holy Spirit
to the ministry of Jesus cannot be overstated.

Jesus’ ministry did not begin until He was baptized in water

14But John tried to prevent Him, saying,
"I have need to be baptized by You,
and do You come to me?"
15But Jesus answering said to him,
"Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us
to fulfill all righteousness."
Then he permitted Him.
16After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water;

and behold, the heavens were opened,
and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove
and lighting on Him,
Matthew 3:14-16 NAS

… and the Holy Spirit came
to empower Him and dwell within Him
.

33"I did not recognize Him,
but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me,
'He upon whom you see the Spirit descending
and remaining upon Him,
this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.'
John 1:33 NAS

Who was speaking in John 1:33?
It was John the Baptist.
John the Baptist was Jesus’ cousin.
It is not much of a stretch to believe
that John heard all about Jesus
and His virgin birth as he was growing up.
Yet, he was not certain who Jesus was;
that is how much Jesus looked like a man.

Jesus didn’t walk around with a halo over His head.
He was a plain man,
with no outstanding features
that set him apart from others.

2For He grew up before Him
like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
that we should look upon Him,
nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
Isaiah 53:2 NAS

In Matthew 11:2 when John was in prison
he sent his disciples to Jesus
to ask if He was really the One

2Now when John, while imprisoned,
heard of the works of Christ,
he sent word by his disciples
3and said to Him,
"Are You the Expected One,
or shall we look for someone else?"
4Jesus answered and said to them,
"Go and report to John what you hear and see:
5the blind receive sight and the lame walk,
the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear,
the dead are raised up,
and the poor have the Gospel preached to them.
Matthew 11:2-5 NAS

Remember what happened when Jesus returned home to Galilee.

54He came to His hometown
and began teaching them in their synagogue,
so that they were astonished, and said,
"Where did this man get this wisdom
and these miraculous powers?
55"Is not this the carpenter's son?
Is not His mother called Mary,
and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?
56"And His sisters, are they not all with us?
Where then did this man get all these things?"
57And they took offense at Him But Jesus said to them,
"A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown
and in his own household."
58And He did not do many miracles there
because of their unbelief.
Matthew 13:54-58 NAS

Jesus looked like a man, because He was a man.
Again, there was no halo over His head
(accept for the transfiguration).

So we too might ask, and many still do –
“Where then did this man get all these things.”
This is the critical question.

Jesus received these things
because He was empowered by the Holy Spirit!

Everything Jesus did in His life and ministry
from that time forward, He did as a man
who was empowered by the Holy Spirit.

16After being baptized,
Jesus came up immediately from the water;
and behold, the heavens were opened,
and he saw the Spirit of God
descending as a dove and lighting on Him,
17and behold, a voice out of the heavens said,
"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."
Matthew 3:16-17 NAS
(also - Mark 1:10-11 NAS)

This is the first time that Jesus heard
His heavenly Father’s voice as a man on earth.

Jesus was Born of the Spirit

35The angel answered and said to her,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;
and for that reason the holy Child
shall be called the Son of God.
Luke 1:35 NAS

Jesus was Filled with the Spirit of God Without Measure

34"For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God;
for He gives the Spirit without measure.
35"The Father loves the Son
and has given all things into His hand.
John 3:34-35 NAS

Jesus was Led by the Holy Spirit

1Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit
into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Matthew 4:1 NAS

1Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit,
returned from the Jordan
nd was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness

Luke 4:1 NAS

Jesus was Empowered by the Holy Spirit

14And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district.

Luke 4:14 NAS

Jesus Spoke and Taught by the Holy Spirit

1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners;

Luke 4:18 NAS

2until the day when He was taken up to heaven,
after He had by the Holy Spirit
given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen.
Acts 1:2 NAS

Jesus Healed the Sick by the Spirit
1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To (E)proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners;

Luke 4:18 NAS

Jesus Cast out demons by the Holy Spirit

28"But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God,
then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Matthew 12:28 NAS

Jesus Offered Himself Up On Calvary by the Holy Spirit

14how much more will the blood of Christ,
who through the eternal Spirit
offered Himself without blemish to God,
cleanse your conscience from dead works
to serve the living God?
Hebrews 9:14 NAS

Jesus was Resurrected by the Power of the Holy Spirit

11But if the Spirit of Him
who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,
He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead
will also give life to your mortal bodies
through His Spirit who dwells in you.
Romans 8:11 NAS

18For Christ also died for sins once for all,
the just for the unjust,
so that He might bring us to God,
having been put to death in the flesh,
but made alive in the spirit;

1 Peter 3:18 NAS

Jesus was Full of Joy by the Holy Spirit

21At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit,
and said, "I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent
and have revealed them to infants.
Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
Luke 10:21 NAS

Jesus was Operating in the Gifts of the Spirit

7"Why does this man speak that way?
He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?"
8Immediately Jesus, aware in His spirit
that they were reasoning that way within themselves,
said to them,
"Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts?”

Mark 2:7-8 NAS

7But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit
for the common good.
8For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit,
and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit;
9to another faith by the same Spirit,
and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit,

1 Corinthians 12:7-9 NAS

Jesus was Operating in the Fruit of the Spirit

The fruit of the Spirit was the nature and character of Jesus

22But the fruit of the Spirit
is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control;
against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-25 NAS

Those who belong to Jesus Christ
have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires
Since we live by the Spirit,
let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Jesus like the other prophets,
did all this under the Old Testament age.

The Spirit was only given to priests, kings, prophets
and people anointed for special acts of service.

Ex. When Jesus sent out the seventy they did so under His anointing

1Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others,
and sent them in pairs ahead of Him
to every city and place where He Himself was going to come.
2And He was saying to them,
"The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;
therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest
to send out laborers into His harvest.
17The seventy returned with joy, saying,
"Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."
Luke 10:1-2,17 NAS

The Spirit was taken from Moses and put on the elders
so that they could help make Godly judgments…

24So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD.
Also, he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people,
and stationed them around the tent.
25Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him;
and He took of the Spirit who was upon him
and placed Him upon the seventy elders.
And when the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied.
But they did not do it again.
Numbers 11:24-25 NAS

Bezalel and Oholiab were anointed by the Spirit
and given special skills in order to build the tabernacle to God’s specifications.

1Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2"See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri,
the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.
3"I have filled him with the Spirit of God
in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge,
and in all kinds of craftsmanship,
6"And behold, I Myself have appointed with him Oholiab,
the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan;
and in the hearts of all who are skillful
I have put skill, that they may make all
that I have commanded you:

Exodus 31:1-3,6 NAS

But after His death and resurrection and return to heaven,
the Spirit is now released on all who believe in Him.

28"It will come about after this
That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind;
And your sons and daughters will prophesy,
Your old men will dream dreams,
Your young men will see visions.
29"Even on the male and female servants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
Joel 2:28-29 & Acts 2:16-18 NAS

This is the reason why Jesus said
that we would do even greater works
than what He did during His ministry.

12"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me,
the works that I do, he will do also;
and greater works than these he will do;
because I go to the Father.
John 14:12 NAS
Jesus was Justified by the Spirit

16By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness:
He who was revealed in the flesh,
Was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory.

1 Timothy 3:16 NAS
4May it never be!
Rather, let God be found true,
though every man be found a liar, as it is written,
"THAT YOU MAY BE JUSTIFIED IN YOUR WORDS,
AND PREVAIL WHEN YOU ARE JUDGED."

Romans 3:4 NAS

4Against You, You only, I have sinned
and done what is evil in Your sight,
so that You are justified when You speak
and blameless when You judge.

Psalm 51:5 NAS

Jesus was Also Our Baptizer:

If it was so important to Jesus
to live and be empowered by the Holy Spirit,
then how much more should we as believers,
also depend upon the Holy Spirit of God.

All God has for us, and wants us to do in and through us,
will only be accomplished if it is done
by the operation of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

7"But I tell you the truth,
it is to your advantage that I go away;
for if I do not go away,
the Helper will not come to you;
but if I go, I will send Him to you.
John 17:6 NAS

The only way that we can adequately and effectively pastor or shepherd
the sheep that the Holy Spirit has given us,
is by the same example Jesus shepherded His sheep while He was on the earth –
a total dependence upon the Holy Spirit of God.

As the Disciples followed Jesus during His ministry and they were often confused,
not able to understand what Jesus was telling them.
They were self seeking – who is the greatest and who will sit at Your right side?

But after they were filled with the Holy Spirit in the upper room,
they understood what Jesus was doing, and what the kingdom was about.

Before the indwelling of the Spirit,
Peter could not understand why Jesus had to die.
After being filled with the Holy Spirit,
Peter speaks the Word boldly and 3000 become Born Again in one meeting!

They went into the upper room fearing for their very lives,
and came out of the upper room as men sold out to the Word,
the establishment of the kingdom of God, and the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Before they received the Holy Spirit
they demonstrated an earthly point of view.
Following the breath of the Holy Spirit
they received the same heavenly point of view
which Jesus operated from during His ministry on earth.

We can know if we are flowing in the things of the Holy Spirit
simply by checking our point of view.
Are we drawn to the things of God,
while operating in Christ’s nature
(the fruits of the Spirit – “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control – Galatians 5:22-23)

And are we flowing in the gifts of the Spirit,
word of wisdom through the Spirit,
the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit;
faith by the same Spirit,
gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
to see the kingdom of Heaven established here on earth.

Jesus first learned the Word,
and obedience through suffering,
as the Fruit was growing in His life.
He then was able to operate in the power of the Spirit,
to see His Father’s kingdom established here on earth.
Over and over He proclaimed that the kingdom of Heaven was at hand.

Much of the church is limping through its existence,
hoping to get to heaven and discover this marvelous kingdom.
Indeed we are meant to experience this Kingdom life
right here, right now!
If we are not seeking it we will never find it this side of heaven.
7"Ask, and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find;
knock, and it will be opened to you.
8"For everyone who asks receives,
and he who seeks finds,
and to him who knocks it will be opened.
9"Or what man is there among you who,
when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?
Matthew 7:7 NAS

Much of the body of Christ walks with this opinion:
24Wretched man that I am!
Who will set me free from the body of this death?

They haven’t plugged into the source of life and life abundant (John 10:10b):
25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Romans 7:24-25a

When we are Born Again by the Spirit into Christ Jesus
we were all made New Creations (Creatures).

17Therefore if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creature;
the old things passed away;
behold, new things have come.

2 Corinthians 5:17

The problem is that far too many Christians,
are dragging that Old Man around with them,
because they have failed to recognize
the importance of being baptized
into the things of the Holy Spirit.

Notice this command of Jesus
By the way the word command is a compound word that means:

Co = together
mand = hand

i.e “lets do this together hand-in-hand.”

4Gathering them together,
He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem,
but to wait for what the Father had promised,
"Which," He said, "you heard of from Me;
5for John baptized with water,
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit
not many days from now."

Pentecost is all about being filled with the Holy Spirit
The first Pentecost was the giving of the Law through Moses.
The last Pentecost was the giving of the power of the Holy Spirit

Both the first and last were given
to set God’s people apart
so that they would be distinct and different
from the rest of the world.

8but you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you shall be My witnesses
both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and even to the remotest part of the earth."
Acts 1:8 NAS
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