At the foot of the Cross

At the foot of the Cross

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Lesson 7 -Chapter 6: Forgotten God Take-Away


Forget About His Will for Your Life!

Creative thoughts come from The Creator. When the Spirit leads you to communicate His Will to someone, don’t be ashamed of your attempt. Pray for humility, guidance, and how you might honor God (and not yourself) as you express your faith to someone else. Pray for wisdom to approach someone who needs the Light.  We use to think we had to give the entire plan of salvation before we would even speak to someone. This is simply not true. Praising God and sharing faith is the “seed” we are to sow. We sow, perhaps someone else will water, but the Lord will always give the increase because His Word will not return to Him void. (Isaiah 55:11 )

Each person called by God in Biblical accounts was a BUSY person.  None were just idly thinking of what they should do….they were BUSY. God called Moses when he was tending sheep, the apostles when they were fishing, Abraham when he was overseeing his household. God changed the direction of history because busy people dropped what they were doing and followed His calling. Never think that being “too busy” will be an excuse to God for not dropping everything to follow where He leads.

COMMITMENT TO A LIFE OF WALKING BY THE SPIRIT

We don’t need to see the entire plan before we obey The Lord. Very few Biblical heroes were given a “life plan” before they walked in step with the Spirit. If we know the entire way, then we don’t check in with the map very often. God wants us to dependent on Him. He wants us to check in with Him often. He wants to be involved moment by moment directing our path and for us to be solely dependent on Him always. A “right now” walk with the Lord keeps us in tune with the Spirit. “One step at a time, dear Savior” is the exact relationship God wants us to hold on to. It keeps us humble just as a little child, wholly dependent upon our God and His power. This is the definition of Kingdom Living. God despises the opposite relationship: “your lips honor me, but your hearts are far from me”.

As we grow in the Spirit we will learn to have a continual spiritual conversation with our God, to pray without ceasing, to meditate on His Words. We will talk, question, think, and be enlightened by our intimate conversations through the Spirit. These are the conversations that help to transform us, change us, mold us, and which circumcise our hearts to become more sensitive to His Will. We are to always carry the death of our own fleshly desires as Christ bore His own cross. But as Americans we are not use to putting to death the desires of the flesh. We have been propagandized to make sure we have the very best that we can afford….and even that which we cannot afford….

A SPIRIT WALK IS SACRIFICIAL

A Spirit walk is a sacrificial walk and this has almost become alien to us with all our freedoms and funds. Luke 12:42-48 directly condemns the steward servant who hordes his resources. We must learn to think of others more highly than ourselves (Philippians 2:3) and curb our selfish mindsets of “me and mine.” A Spirit walk does not attempt to blend a little Jesus with a lot of worldly pursuits. It is a narrow road and few there be that even desire it.

SHORT AUDIO (Listen):  http://tinyurl.com/kbscb68  (BURNED UP!)

YOUR SPIRIT WALK IS UNIQUE

 A Spirit walk may require us to give up things that are not sinful to others, but are taking up too much of our time and consideration thus becoming sinful to us. A Spirit walk is personal. When we make plans and dream dreams and then go to God to ask Him to make them happen, we have missed the entire point. God is not a Disneyland Dad. His purpose is not to fulfill our every wish. Likewise, as we are prompted by “a spirit”, we should take time to mediate, reflect, and test the spirit by examining Scripture to be sure it is Holy.  God will open doors for you but He wants you to stay in close relationship with Him as you go through those doors. No one else can take our place in the Body of Christ. WE are uniquely needed to fulfill our role in the Church.

No one else will see the opportunities we see today, stand next to the person we are standing next to, or meet a new face in a new place. Francis Chan shared how he approached a stranger to say, “God loves you” and still with fear and trepidation. What he did not say was that each time we overcome the impulse NOT to approach others; we begin to form a habit that is more and more Christ-like. May we always keep our eyes and hearts open for  unique opportunities to sow seed for the Kingdom of God.

VIDEO (you probably have not seen this one!)   http://tinyurl.com/jwoggrq

YOUR SPIRIT WALK IS A LIFE-LONG PROCESS

We never really complete the walk with the Spirit. We never “arrive” until we see the “unveiled” face of God. Our Lord wants us in this relationship for the “long haul”. His plan to send His son and then His Spirit was to develop a relationship that is always growing and maturing. This is His design to share His glory to a broken world.  God’s work in us is accomplished by His own power. “Well done thou good and faithful servant” is a phrase that will only be spoken to those who are true servant/slaves of Jesus Christ as shown by their sacrificial life-styles and humble walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.

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