Led by the Spirit

The Holy Spirit - being led by the Spirit Summer Hill Church 22 August 2018 1. What we all want a. live for God i. the gospel according to Godspell I. Day by day Day by day Oh, Dear Lord Three things I pray To see thee more clearly Love thee more dearly Follow thee more nearly Day by day ii. it’s something we have touched on a number of times I. and it taps into a desire we have if we are a Christian a). for a closer walk with God II. we all long for that vital moment, that sense of closeness with God that will change us - because we feel it deep inside. a). if we are truly Christian, as mixed up as we are at times, we do want to serve God, we do want to know him better, we do want to walk closely to him. III. we are built for relationship a). we long for meaningful relationships, relationships of trust, relationships of faithfulness i). and in particular God has created us for relationship with him b). as his creatures, his beloved creatures i). we want deep and intimate and real relationship with God b. Find his will i. we want to know what God wants for us. I. and so we seek his will in so many areas of life a). what job b). what bgr c). where to live d). what course to study e). whether to marry, and who to if the answer is yes… ii. that is we look for guidance from God - because we are Christian I. we don’t just do what we want, we want to do what he wants a). and we know that God promises to guide us by his Spirit i). But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. John 16:13 II. but that of course leaves us with the question - how do we experience that? a). is it a still small voice? Is it an internal prompting? Is it a feeling about the “right thing” to do? b). we want to be led by the Holy Spirit - sounds right - sounds like the spiritual thing to do doesn’t it 2. Led by the Spirit i. but what is it? What does it mean to be led by the Spirit. I. for much of my early Christian life, it seemed to me that being led by the Spirit meant that you sort of got an internal direction ii. some sort of feeling that this is what the Spirit wanted you to do I. and it so often seemed to be vocationally related a). the Spirit led me on to the mission-field b). or the Spirit led me to be a (doctor/nurse/lawyer/teacher) II. or alternatively it seemed to be related to romance a). the Spirit led me to date/marry etc this person or that person b). or to leave this relationship or that relationship III. I remember quite clearly once, as an early twenties year old, one of my friends told me she wanted to be a nurse and that the Spirit was leading her to do that. a). If that was the case, then the Spirit had made some pretty major miscalculation, because we could all tell that she wasn’t cut out for it i). not a lot of compassion ii). hated the sight of blood, and other bodily fluids b). and she lasted in nursing training 6 months, before the Spirit led her out again and to teaching. i). Where as far as I know she is still working. IV. what do you make of that first leading? She was so sure. a). but it seemed like it wasn’t the Spirit’s leading. iii. as we saw last week the way to work this out is to see what the Bible says. I. Used 4 times in the NT, look at each one of them a). Luke 4:1 and Matthew 5:1, Rom 8:14, Gal 5:18, and John 16:13 II. so only twice in the letters, and three times in the gospels. a). and only John’s gospel tells us what to expect in our lives - Matthew and Luke described what happened to Jesus. 3. Led to repentance a. All creation i. God is the God of all the world I. he made everything a). Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. John 1:3 II. and God in his goodness does not leave the world to it’s own devices. i). the WHOLE world is his - not just nice middle class SH. b). not only does he leave his ambassadors in the world - that’s us by the way III. he also leaves his Spirit to do a very important thing a). to lead the world to Christ b. sin, judgement and righteousness i. and the first thing we see is that the Spirit will sharpen our sense of sin I. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; John 16:8–9 ii. I don’t think that’s quite as hard as it sounds. I. what it means is that it’s the Spirit’s work to show people their sin. a). to convince and shame people about the way we ignore God II. and I reckon we can often tell when people are feeling guilty about something because they get indignant when challenged, a). and we can see that in the world walking away from Christ, that they are more and more indignant about the name of Christ. III. He convinces the world that it is wrong about sin - that sin really is sin and righteousness is important, not an optional extra for those who want to hold the high moral ground - and judgement - that judgement is coming. iii. so every time anyone is upset about sin, either in repentance OR indignation in a sense we are seeing the Spirit at work I. so the VERY FIRST STEP for people to know Christ, is for the Spirit to be at work - so PRAY! Choose someone to pray for every day for the next month c. convinced of our sin i. and so too with us I. when we feel the pangs of guilt about our sin - it’s a good thing. It’s a spirit thing a). not just to feel bad, but to prompt us to humbly acknowledge our sin and turn to Jesus II. that is the work of the Spirit a). that’s the first step to holiness. To acknowledge our sin and repent i). that’s why nearly every week in church, one of the first things that we do is that we confess our sins together b). because the Spirit-filled church will be a church full of confession of sin, i). that’s the work of the Spirit 4. Led into all truth a. so the Spirit leads away from sin, and towards the truth i. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. John 16:13 ii. without the Spirit coming we would not come into the truth, we would still be left in ignorance I. but, to quote Pontius Pilate in John 18, What is Truth? a). a deep philosophical question, but Jesus explains II. The truth comprises 3 things b. he will not speak on his own i. that is - there is no Spirit truth that is different to Christ truth or the Father’s truth I. he doesn’t go off on tangents, or have a different message II. he is one with the Father and the Son so he doesn’t take us in a different direction a). in fact it’s even closer than that c. he speaks only what he hears i. so not only is there no Spirit truth that is different to other truths from God, I. in fact everything the Spirit says comes from the Father and the Son a). there is no word, no guidance, no insight, no calling that is not from the Father and the Son ii. because what he does is he reminds us of Jesus! I. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26 iii. the Spirit’s job is actually to remind us of what Jesus said. I. to drive us to the Scriptures, where the inspired record of what Jesus said has been written a). and this is where we are to learn about what the Spirit says II. The spirit breathes out the word of God - has expired the scriptures a). and so we find the Spirit’s leading in the Word of God - in the Scriptures themselves i). since ii). the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:17 iv. much is made of the fact that the sword of the Spirit is the word of God - the only offensive weapon we have in the armour of God - and there may be merit to that I. but much more importantly - the Word is the Spirit’s weapon. It’s what the Spirit uses to do his work a). it’s what judges us and divides us to marrow and bones (Heb 4:12) II. and it’s where we started our series. We can’t separate the work of the Spirit from the Word of God, the Scriptures. God’s exhalation of his word v. and finally d. he will explain what is about to happen i. lots of theories - but Jesus is speaking about what is about to happen I. the events of the next 4 days. a). the Spirit will uncover the true meaning of the cross and resurrection of Christ i). at this time, the disciples didn’t get it, א. but afterwards they did. eg ii). After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken. John 2:22 II. this wasn’t the disciples waking up on their own, this was the Spirit’s work. Reminding them ii. and everytime you open the Scriptures, the Spirit is speaking. The Spirit is leading, the Spirit is guiding I. if we will only listen - essential to be in a GG - if not - drop me a note NOW. II. and get in the habit of opening the scriptures for yourself. iii. and as you do that, the Spirit will lead you - directly and always to Jesus. 5. Led to Jesus a. Testify i. because the Spirit’s work. as we have seen over and over is not about himself, but is primarily to direct us to Jesus I. “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. John 15:26 ii. He is sent by Jesus, he comes from the Father I. he is the Spirit of Truth - he never lies and never will contradict himself or the Father or the Son a). and he testifies about Jesus - same word as bears witness. II. he will tell us the truth about Jesus, he will never lead us astray or away from Christ. i). what he says will be true about Christ ii). what he says will glorify Christ iii). what he says will remind of Christ iv). what he says will never bring shame on the name of Christ v). and will always lead us to living more holy lives b). I remember so clearly being told so often by young Christian men usually that they felt the Spirit was leading them to do something profoundly foolish, and sometimes sinful. But I know that the Spirit would not do that III. he will lead us unceasingly to Christ and away from our sin b. about Jesus i. and it will be about Jesus - not about himself I. and so any church, Christian group, that focusses more on the Spirit’s work than on what the Spirit wants us to focus on I think has got the cart before the horse! ii. that any truly Holy Spirit Christianity will be focussed on Jesus to the praise of the Father I. because the Spirit keeps pointing away from himself to Jesus a). which is why - if you remember the comments I made about prophecy last week i). that prophecy is making the mind of God known - the mind of God that we know in the Scriptures b). that is why the most important verse in the whole of the Scriptures on prophecy is Rev 19:10 i). Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.” Revelation 19:10 II. The Spirit will ALWAYS lead us and point us and speak of Jesus. iii. and draws us into Sonship 6. Led to sonship - 450 - 1 i. In leading us to put our faith in Christ he leads us to the relationship of sonship I. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14 ii. We’ve spent a fair bit of time on this in previous sermons, so if you want to hear more about it go back and listen on our website I. they are downloadable as an audio file or as a video which has the slides embedded iii. but the amazing thing is that in leading us to Christ, the Spirit does not just leave us as we are I. worthless creatures, he exalts us and makes us sons of God - heirs of God iv. sometimes we say “we’re all God’s children” meaning every human being I. and there is a sense that that’s true - we are certainly all humanity made in the image of God, and loved by God v. but he only ever calls 2 groups his children, his sons I. Israel in the OT II. and Christians in the NT vi. we have a special relationship with God that is different to all the rest of creation that has nothing to do with our intrinsic worth - in which we are all equal in the eyes of God I. but in his grace. His favour. His kindness which has nothing to do with anything in and of us. vii. the special relationship is sonship, which comes from the work of the Spirit drawing us to the son, so that united with him we can call out Abba father., And is God is our father, my father, a personal relationship with me, not just the Father. b. and that relationship of sonship is not like being a slave, but being an heir - a relationship of freedom 7. Led to freedom a. and that freedom is a true freedom i. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Galatians 5:18 b. see the Spirit leads us in a different way to the way law leads us i. law imposed from the outside is always a prison I. we look for ways around it, how do we bypass the law, how do we push the boundaries so that we get more of what we want to do ii. and so we look at things like the works of the flesh in Gal 5:19-21 I. sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. Galatians 5:19–21 iii. and we start to ask what are they, exactly, what about if hatred is justified, or if our discord is all the other persons fault. I. I can’t tell you how many conversations I have had with uni students about what exactly constitutes sexual immorality and the precise definition of the greek word porneia - because they wanted to justify what they were doing with their b/g friend sexually II. what that shows is that we are seeing the prison bars and trying to work our way around our conscience and the law iv. but when we are led by the spirit then what was the law that we wanted to avoid becomes the freedom of doing what we now want to do because we have been changed inside I. we no longer have prison bars, just the freedom of serving God as he wants us to, because he is changing us inside by his Spirit a). yes we fail, yes we have mixed motives, but the Spirit is changing us. II. so that we can say in the words of Jesus with overflowing gratitude a). I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10 v. what n amazing promise I. and that is what happens when the Spirit comes II. and he leads us from sin, into truth to Jesus and to a life of the freedom of holy living. 8. Led to holy living a. and here is the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in every Christian’s life. To make us holy i. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:13 b. to bring us to life, by putting to death in us the flesh. By leading us to new life, by working in us holiness and righteousness i. not that we could ever do it in ourselves. I. but he now does work in us so that we act from faith a). he now does work in us so that we turn our back on sin more often II. he now works in us so that we can feel and act in love ii. and he now works in us so that we praise and honour the name of Jesus 9. My life a. Spirit Centred i. a spirit centred life, a HOLY spirit centred life, will be one that shows forth the fruit of the Spirit. I. and will be marked by love ii. it will be a life of increasing holiness as we are changed and reshaped by the mighty power of God I. I have given you a challenge each week, and there was a challenge earlier to pick someone to pray for for the next month that they might come to know Jesus a). but the challenge I want to give you today is more internal i). can you look at your life and say I live a Holy Spirit life II. and we have to remember what that means a). a life led by the Spirit will acknowledge and repent of sins i). will listen to Jesus in his word b). will centre around the cross of Christ and his resurrection for us i). and will live lives of freedom from the law to live holy and godly lives for the sake and glory of Christ c). there is a way that of course, none of us live up to that III. but what do you internally want. Look deep down. What do you want…… a). are you seeking and thirsting after Christ? Are you: b. Christ Centred i. is Jesus at the centre of who you are and what you want? I. do you pray - even as we rush about in our busy lives - do we pray for his honour? a). that is: i). do we pray that our lives would be more conformed to the likeness of Christ ii). do we pray that our church would be a place of love and truth, centred around the word of Christ iii). do we pray that others would come to a knowledge of Christ that means that they too will bring praise and honour to his name b). and if not, why not? What is holding you up? Is there sin you need to deal with, repent of, walk away from. Do you need to pray for a major change of heart. c. following the Spirit’s leading i. Christian or non-Christian - this message is for you today. a). Christian - follow the leading of the Spirit to the cross, where your sins are forgiven and your wonderful sonship and freedom in the gospel are found. and repent and be thankful for his amazing gifts b). Not-yet a Christian? = follow the leading of the Spirit to the cross of Jesus where you sins are forgiven and you will be brought into a new and wonderful relationship with God i). a relationship where he remakes you and reshapes you with new life and a fresh start. ii). you will have life to the full. He absolutely promises it d. what an amazing God we have, what an amazing Spirit who dwells in us, changes us, leads us to the cross and grants us new life. e. wonderful prayer we will sing in a moment - but I am going to pray it now. i. Give me an undivided mind That I might love Your word. Help me to hunger for Your voice And know Your Spirit's sword. For You are good, Your truth unchanging. Life is found in serving You.