What does the Spirit say to
you?
Does everything you know about Christ and the Christian life
come from your pastor, your favorite Christian author, your small group
leader? Teachers are important! The
counsel of our Christian community is of great worth, but we are people of the
Spirit who have the privilege of knowing the Lord’s voice. While talking with a couple about a major decision
they faced, I counseled them to ask the Lord for His guidance, not a general
way, but specifically. The way forward for them is not simple, yet God has a
way. He knows which choices will let the
radiance of His joy shine most brightly through them. Will it be easily discerned? Perhaps not.
Will it be the path of least resistance? Literally, only God knows. He will
lead if they will listen, for they are His children. His will discovered is always “good, pleasing, and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)
Read this promise with faith and with an open mind. "And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus
from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature,
to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you
will die; but if by the Spirit you
put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are
sons of God." (Romans 8:11-14, NIV) Jesus calls the Spirit our “Counselor.” (John 14:26) The word in the original text, “parakletos” was one used to describe a
person on whom you called with things went wrong or when you had a big choice
to make – an advisor, a best friend, a spokesperson. Those who come to Christ in faith receive the
Spirit who lives in us and gain the privilege of walking in the wisdom of their
Heavenly Abba!
It is probably the most neglected privilege of the Christian
life. Many Christians in America are virtually deaf to the voice of the
Spirit. Some fear becoming a ‘charis-maniac.’
They refuse to be one of those people who claim to be led of God’s Spirit who
make subjective, emotion-laden, even silly, choices. “God told me” is a much-abused phrase in some
corners of the Church. Others are captivated by the rational world-view in
which we are all trained. They live by their own wisdom alone, discounting the
realm of the supernatural. As we read
in the Word, if we are alive in
Christ the Spirit lives in us and He is speaking, leading, guiding, teaching us
all the time. And many of us are deaf to
the Lord’s leading because we just do not listen. We pack our lives full of things from early
in the morning until late in the evening.
Ringing phones, multiple responsibilities, and all kinds of distractions
create so much clamor around us that the ‘still, small voice’ of Heaven is lost
in the din! We are so addicted to all of
this, that we get anxious if we attempt to put it all away for a season of
contemplative silence.
The Spirit will
lead us and when He does, He will make us into gentle, loving, joyful
people. Being Spirit-led is not a
hobby. We cannot learn to know His voice
in an hour on Sunday morning. This is a way of life, born in humility, fed by
time in silence, alone with God. He will make you other-worldly. He will likely even diminish your ability to
know the kind of success that many value. Where He is leading, people will
matter more than profit, mercy will triumph over justice, love will be the
rule.
Take a lesson from little Samuel, when he was entering the
service of God. As he lay alone on his bed, he heard a whisper but did not
understand the origin of it. He ran to Eli, thinking it must be the old prophet
calling him. Eli knew it was the Spirit’s
voice and sent the boy back to his bed with this counsel. “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your
servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The LORD came
and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel
said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel 3:9-10, NIV) That little boy became a leader in Israel, a
man of powerful influence.
The open secret of Christians who influence their world is
not personality nor intelligence. It is knowing
the voice of the Spirit and living by His word. Jesus’ promise is ours. Will you learn to receive Him? "When the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you
will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem,
throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8,
NLT)
__________
Spirit Of God Descend Upon My Heart
Spirit of God descend
upon my heart.
Wean it from earth,
thro' all its pulses move.
Stoop to my weakness,
mighty as Thou art,
And make me love Thee
as I ought to love.
I ask no dream, no
prophet ecstasies;
No sudden rending of
the veil of clay,
No angel visitant, no
opening skies.
But take the dimness
of my soul away.
Hast Thou not bid us
love Thee, God and King;
All Thine own, soul,
heart, and strength and mind?
I see Thy cross, there
teach my heart to cling.
O let me seek Thee and
O let me find!
Teach me to feel that
Thou art always nigh.
Teach me the struggles
of the soul to bear.
To check the rising
doubt, the rebel sigh,
Teach me the patience
of unanswered prayer.
Teach me to love Thee
as Thine angels love,
One holy passion
filling all my frame.
The baptism of the
heav'n descended Dove
My heart an altar and
Thy love the flame.
Frederick Cook Atkinson | George Croly
Public Domain
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