Holy Spirit and Fire

"John answered, saying to all, 'I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.'" Luke 3:16,17

Baptized with the Holy Spirit

Pentecost marks the birth of the Church, the day on which Jesus baptized and saturated all those who believed in Him with His Spirit of holiness. Pentecost is also the fulfilment of the first part of what John prophesied concerning Jesus, that He would clean out His threshing floor and gather the wheat into His barn. The Church is God's "gathered ones," set apart by His Spirit to dwell in Him for eternity.

Baptized with fire

Pentecost is also the evidence that Jesus will fulfill the second part of John's prophecy. When Jesus returns, He will indeed baptize with fire and condemn those who have not been gathered into His barn - the chaff that will burn with unquenchable fire.

As the Church celebrates Pentecost let us be reminded that we are Christ's gathered ones, filled with His Spirit, who belong to Him and are set apart for Him but let us also be reminded that those who have not believed will also be baptized, not with the Holy Spirit but with fire.

My prayer for us, as the Church, is that we would respond to the One who is mightier than us with reverence and awe as we recognise that He has the power to baptize with the Spirit and with fire. Let us be saturated with the Holy Spirit but let us also be filled with compassion and urgency to reach those who have not yet been gathered into His barn.

Who do you think you are?

The Father's testimony

"If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid. There is another who testifies in my favour, and I know that his testimony about me is valid. You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved." John 5:31-34

"As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'" Matthew 3:16,17

Jesus lived from the Father's testimony about him. Even Jesus did not depend on his own testimony about himself, nor the testimony of godly men concerning him. The only testimony that he considered valid was the testimony of the Father concerning him. Jesus, therefore, lived by faith in the testimony of the Father. After his baptism, Jesus was led into the desert to be tempted. The devil challenged the testimony Jesus had from the Father saying, "If you are the Son of God..." (Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus, however, trusted in the Father's testimony about him.

A new identity

The apostle Paul lived by faith in his new identity in Christ. He regarded his old identity that was based on his education, his heritage, his intellect, his zeal, and his self-righteousness as "rubbish" compared to knowing Christ and finding his identity in Him (Philippians 3:4-11). Paul lived from the reality of his new identity in Christ saying, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).

Key motivation

Just as Paul lived from the spiritual reality of his new identity in Christ, so he appealed to the Church to live their lives according to the testimony from heaven and the spiritual truth of their new identity in Christ. Paul understood that the believers' key motivation to live godly lives was to believe and live according to their new identity in Christ.

In his letter to the saints in Colosse, Paul writes,

"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with hm in glory." Colossians 3:1-4

Paul appeals to the truth of what Christ has done, is doing and will do. He reminds the Church that they have been raised with Christ (past), that they live with Him in God (present) and that they will be found in Him when He returns (future). Consequently, Paul exhorts the Church to put off her old identity and behaviour and to live in her new identity as "God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved" (Colossians 3:12).

Over and over again in his letters to the Church, Paul reminds the believers about their new identity in Christ in order to move them to live godly lives. He reminds the believers that they are not their own anymore and that they are the temple of the Holy Spirit as the key motivation to avoid sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 8:12-16; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1). He explains how believers belong to one another as the Body of Christ as the key motivation to serve one another (Romans 12:4,5). Paul reminds the believers that they are no longer darkness but light in the Lord and so should live as children of light because that is their new identity in Christ (Ephesians 5:8-14).

Life of faith

We see, therefore, that the life of faith is about living in the truth of what God says about us - the Father's testimony about us - because of what Christ has done, is doing and will do. Those who live in the truth of their new identity in Christ will put off the old and put on the new. They will live as God's people who belong to Him and to one another because they know that they are sons of God and that they are the Body of Christ. 

Living according to identity

What attitude or behaviour needs to change in your life if you truly believe the following testimony about your new identity in Christ?

• You are a new creation in Christ, created in Him to do good works. 2 Cor 5:17; Eph 2:10
• Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. 1 Cor 6:19,20
• You are a member of the Body of Christ. 1 Cor 12:27
• You are holy. Col 3:12
• You are light. Eph 5:8-12
• You are a citizen of heaven. Phil 3:20

These are just a few of the wonderful truths that apply to the believer. Faith in the truth of who we are in Christ should motivate us to live according to our new lives in Christ.  

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1 John 3:1

Are you producing the fruit of the Spirit?

What kind of question is that? Surely I cannot produce the fruit of the Spirit. Is the fruit of the Spirit not His fruit? Is it not the Spirit's work to produce the nature of God in my life?

In my dealings with Christians I have discovered that there are essentially two schools of thought that believers live by. Some believe that the Christian's life is about becoming like Christ whilst others believe the Christian life is about being like Christ. 

Progressive sanctification?

Those who believe that God's children are in a process of becoming like Christ, believe that God is at work in their lives to transform them to become increasingly Christ-like. This process is described as God's sanctifying work that He is doing in the believer's life. Consequently when these believers face challenges, sickness, hardship etc, they attribute their "suffering" to God's disciplining work in their lives to produce Christ-likeness. It is described as God's refining work to produce Christ-likeness. The bottom line however is that God is held responsible for making the believer increasingly Christ-like.

Those who believe that God's children are to be Christ-like, believe that God has sanctified the believer and it is the Christian's responsibility to be like Christ. Challenges, hardship and sickness are attributed to the consequence of living in the world and the work of the Devil. Suffering is understood to be the consequence of obedience to God in this world and punishment is understood as the consequence of disobedience to God. Having received fullness in Christ and the power to be Christ-like (Col. 2:10; 2 Peter 1:3), it is the responsibility of the believer to be like Christ.

The believer's understanding of sanctification will influence and determine the way he or she lives his or her life! Those who believe in progressive sanctification wait for God to do the work while those who believe they have been sanctified do the work according to God's will. For example, the first wait for God to produce His love in them in order to love like Him while the latter have faith in the love they have received and live accordingly in obedience.

The conflict within

Every believer has two desires operating in his or her life. The apostle Paul puts it like this,

"The sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other." Gal. 5:17

There is battle going on in the believer's life and it is up to the believer to choose which desire to fulfill! The child of God must choose to follow the desires of the Spirit in order to produce the fruit of the Spirit. Following the desires of the flesh or self-centredness will produce the fruit of the sinful desires. Who produces the fruit?

That is why Paul says the following,

"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law." Romans 13:8

"Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation - but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it." Romans 8:12

The apostle Paul says the believer has an obligation or a debt (Greek: opheilo) to love. 

It is therefore the believer's responsibility to follow the Spirit's desire and to obey Him and thus reveal the nature of God. The believer doesn't become increasingly loving through progressive sanctification! The believer must choose to live from the Christ within because he or she is sanctified (1 Pet. 1:14-16).

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Ephesians 5:1

"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:22-24

Choose to follow Christ within you and produce the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Since we live by the Spirit let us keep in step with the Spirit." Gal. 5:22,23

 

Are you building godly strongholds?

"For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

Every thought that one receives, owns, relies on, defends and acts upon is a stronghold. The Greek word that we translate as stronghold (ochuroma) describes a castle, fortress, fastness; anything which one relies on; arguments and reasonings by which a disputant endeavours to fortify his opinion and defend it against his opponent.

Negative and positive strongholds

A stronghold is either negative or positive, a lie or truth. Whatever thought a person chooses to accept or receive, own or possess, rely or depend on, protect or defend and act upon is a stronghold in that person's life whether it is a lie or the truth.

Source of strongholds

Our thinking is formed by various sources of information. These include,

• Information from others (parents, friends, colleagues, media, literature, teachers, psychologists, etc.)
• Information derived from experience.
• Information derived from circumstances.
• Information from God.
• Information from Satan.

Whatever information we trust as the truth, we will accept, receive, own, rely on, defend and act on.

Deceptive assumptions

For example if a friend walks in the room and is unresponsive to you, you begin to think all sorts of things and have to choose what you think is true. If you choose to believe that the friend is upset with you, you accept that as the truth, you receive it, own it, depend on it and eventually defend it. Consequently this belief or assumption is the truth for you until disproved. However, every subsequent information or observed behaviour will be used to justify the belief and thus strengthen the stronghold. If the stronghold is further strengthened by faulty assumptions, you can become so convinced that you are right that even when the friend genuinely tries to convince you that he is not upset with you but had a headache, you still won't believe him. You have built a stronghold that you are now even defending! The initial information you received has been turned into a negative stronghold that is based on a lie - a false perception and subsequent false assumption strengthened to become a stronghold.

A battle of the mind

A battle is going on for our minds. Satan wants us to build ungodly strongholds whereas God wants us to build godly strongholds. Much of our thinking needs to be changed so that we live godly lives. That is why the apostle Paul urges believers to have their minds renewed in order to be Christ-like (Rom. 12:2).

Ungodly strongholds

Strongholds that are built on lies are ungodly fortresses that need to be torn down and replaced with the truth of God. Ungodly strongholds are exposed when we accept and receive the word of God as the truth. The writer to the Hebrews describes the word of God as "living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account" (Heb. 4:12,13). In other words, the word of God exposes whether our thinking is in accordance with the truth or not.

Exposing lies

Ungodly thinking must be replaced by godly thinking before it becomes a stronghold that governs one's life. Paul says we must "take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ." The believer must keep his thinking in check and always identify negative thinking in the light of God's word. Failure to do so allows ungodly thinking to poison one's mind and establish itself as a fortress is one's life! That is why Peter says, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith" (1  Peter 5:8,9). The lies of the enemy are presented to us as truth. Words that have been said to us by our parents, teachers, psychologists and the like are not always the truth! We must recognise that not all information presented to us is the truth! If we accept every bit of information offered to us, we are certain to build strongholds based on lies as well as on the truth. The only way to identify what is true and false is to trust the word of God as absolute truth, accept it, receive it, own it, depend on it and defend it. Only then can one expose ungodly information that is contrary to God's word.

Truth or counterfeit?

A friend of mine works for a bank and has the job of identifiying counterfeit money and training people to differentiate between true and false bank notes. He explained that in order to identify the counterfeit notes, one must study the authentic notes and know everything possible about them. Only then can one expose the counterfeit notes. Similarly the believer can only expose the lies of the enemy that are presented as truth by knowing the real truth - the word of God.

Building godly strongholds

In order to build godly strongholds so as to be Christ-like, I believe the following principles are necessary for every believer:

A desire to be Christ-like.

Unless you believe that God's will for your life is to be like Jesus, you won't work on changing the way you think. The word of God is clear that it is indeed God's will for every believer to live as Jesus did on earth and that every believer has been joined to Christ to be like Him and to do the work He did whilst on earth (see Rom. 8:29; John 14:9-12; 1 John 2:6; 1 Cor. 11:1). Christ-likeness is commanded for "it is written: 'be holy, because I am holy.'" (1 Peter 1:16).

A recognition that there is the possibility of having ungodly strongholds in one's life!

It is a humbling thing to admit that not everything one has built one's life on is necessarily the truth! Opening oneself to God's correction is choosing to submit to Him and His word. God's thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8) and so God doesn't seek to improve the way we think but replace our thinking with His thoughts. We are transformed by the renewing of our thinking and not the improvement of our thinking!

A trust in God's word as absolute truth.

Unless you trust God's word as absolute truth you will struggle to submit to it and allow it to renew your thinking. God's word is not one among equals. It is absolute truth. It is an offense to the post-modern worldview that accepts everything as truth. You will be labelled as narrow-minded and as a fundamentalist. Belief in, and submission to God's word sets you apart from the world as you become the revelation of truth in the flesh (see John 17:17,18). The believer can only be holy as he or she lives God's Holy Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.

A renewing of the mind

A renewing of the mind will only come about as the believer accepts God's word as the truth, receives it, owns it, depends on it and defends it. The believer that truly allows God to renew his mind and build godly strongholds in his life will act accordingly. Living according to the truth is what sets us free from ungodly thinking and behaviour. Just hearing God's word will not renew our thinking. The believer must accept it, receive it, own it, rely on it, defend it and act on it before it becomes a transforming belief. Jesus says, "If you hold to my teaching...you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" (John 8:31,32). Belief without action is simply opinion or as James puts it, "Faith without deeds is dead" (James 2:26).

How to build godly strongholds

Once the believer accepts the above principles s/he will be ready to receive the truth in order to break down ungodly strongholds and replace them with godly strongholds. I believe every disciple of Christ should be a student of the Word of God on a daily basis - not just to aquire knowledge about the Bible but to encounter God's transforming presence and power as s/he allows God to renew his/her thinking. God desires to reveal Himself to His children to renew them from glory to glory (see 2 Cor. 3:18; 4:16)! Christ is formed in us as we build godly strongholds. Here are some steps that have helped me live in Christ-likeness:

• Ask God to give you spiritual revelation, understanding, knowledge and wisdom before reading His word. The Holy Spirit reveals the deep things of God and will use God's word to expose and demolish ungodly strongholds (See 1 Cor. 2; John 16:14).

• Honour the word of God as absolute truth and read it with humility, allowing God to correct your thinking and build godly thinking (See 1 Thess. 2:13). Your attitude toward the word of God will determine how you receive it (see Matthew 13:1-23)!

• Read the word of God slowly and with understanding. The word of God is "living and active" and works in those who believe (Heb. 4:12; 1 Thess. 2:13). Read to gain understanding but also to receive revelation of God. Expect God to speak to you through His word.

• Pay attention to anything the Holy Spirit highlights as you read. As you read the Bible the Holy Spirit may show you something new or exciting or simply profound. When you notice something in particluar, write it down and meditate on it. God wants to impress His word on you. Let it dwell in you as you think about it, pray it and keep it in your heart.

• Take thoughts captive. When you read God's word and you realise that you think differently about God or yourself etc, confess the ungodly thought and replace it with God's truth. Reject the lie and receive the truth! For example, you may think that God doesn't love you because you believe the information your negative circumstances are shouting at you. When you read Romans 8:35-39 that tells you that "nothing can separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord" you must choose to replace the ungodly thoughts with the truth. Having received the truth and replaced the lie, you must own the truth and make it yours. Then you can rely on that truth and defend it whenever the enemy tries to convince you otherwise!

• Meditate on and memorise the word of God! Reflecting on God's word is important for it to become part of you. Memorising scripture is helpful if you have spiritual understanding of the verse or verses. Simply having the scripture in your brain without understanding it is not much use. The word must move from your thinking to your heart, from your soul into your spirit.
• Act on the Truth! If you really trust God's word to be the truth you will be convinced that it is the truth. Consequently you will act on what you believe and are convinced about.When we don't act on God's word we don't really believe it is the truth. Obedience and submission to God's word are the evidence of genuine faith.

I encourage you to saturate yourself with the truth and to build godly strongholds as you accept, receive, own, rely on, defend and act on God's word. Then you will be a living epistle, set apart by the truth and living in Christ-likeness and freedom.

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Are you being sanctified?

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified." Romans 8:29,30

Sanctification?

There is a teaching in the Church today that goes something like this:

Believers have been predestined by God to become like Christ. This becoming like Christ is termed, sanctification and is understood as a process by which the believer increasingly becomes more and more like Jesus. God's purpose for the believer's life is therefore to use circumstances and life to conform His children to Christ. Every hardship and difficult circumstance is then embraced as God's will to refine the believer to become Christ-like. Scriptures such as Romans 8:29,30 and Hebrews 12:5-11 are quoted to substantiate this teaching and you will hear Christians speak of God taking them through the desert; God breaking them; God disciplining them so that they become more like Christ. It sounds spiritual but is this really what the Bible teaches?

The Problem

The problem with this teaching is that it is not only unbiblical but also deceptive.

Let us suppose for a moment that the teaching is true and that every believer is undergoing a process of sanctification.

First of all one needs to ask, why? What is God's purpose in saving us and then working on us to become like Christ? If it is to prepare us for heaven, then surely it is unfair when some live longer than others. If the goal of sanctification is to make us Christ-like, then who will be included as the Bride that God is coming back to that is "a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless" (Eph. 5:27)? Will it be those who have completed the process of sanctification?

Confused Christians

Those who believe this theology live lives of condemnation and fear and interpret the work of Satan as God's work of sanctification! These poor Christians live their lives in misery and even thank God for His "discipline" when the Devil is having a field day, tormenting the deceived child of God. "It's my cross to bear," they explain and continue faithfully and miserably serving the Lord. I thought the Gospel was Good News and that the teaching about God our Saviour was attractive (Titus 2:10)!

Sanctification explained

The root of the problem is in the wrong understanding of sanctification. Wrongly interpreted, Romans 8:29,30 is said to show us that the believer is predestined to be conformed to Christ in the sense that once saved, the believer becomes more and more like Christ. However, the Bible is clear that once the believer is saved through faith in Christ, s/he is sanctified! The believer is therefore predestined to be conformed to Christ, the moment s/he believes. In other words, the believer is Christ-like, the moment s/he is baptised into Christ (Gal. 3:26). The believer's union with the Holy One makes him holy - sanctified! The NT always addresses the Church as God's holy people (sanctified people).

Be holy!

"To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy." 1 Cor. 1:2

God says "Be holy, for I am holy." 1 Peter 1:15,16

God does not say, "become holy"; He says, "BE holy"!

You can only be what you are! I cannot be holy unless I am holy!

You ARE sanctified!

Those who are in Christ are holy - they are sanctified. The believer is called to live a holy life because s/he is holy and not in order to become holy. Click here for more on "Are you holy?"

Does God not dicipline His children?

Yes, certainly! Hebrews 12 confirms that. But, what does God discipline us for?

The context in Hebrews 12 is not character-building but disobedience (sin). God disciplines His children when they sin so that they will continue to live holy lives. God is faithful and will help us continue in holiness (see 1 Thess. 5:23). Hardship is used by God to test our faith and for us to persevere in holiness (see James 1:2-4).

Good News!

The Good News is that through faith in Christ, the believer is sanctified and is made "a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless" (Eph. 5:27). This is the believer's assurance and hope and it is from this hope that faith springs up that drives out fear and condemnation (Col. 1:5; Rom. 8:1, 33-39; 1 John 4:18).

Where is your joy?

Where is your joy? The fruit of the Spirit is joy (Gal. 5:22).

"For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." Romans 14:17

Satan is intent on stealing your joy. As long as you believe that the purpose for your life is to become holy, the Devil will continue to accuse you, condemn you and and make you completely ineffective for God's Kingdom purposes as you continue your self-improvement program and live in misery and continuous failure. Don't let Satan deceive you, child of God! Jesus is your holiness (1 Cor. 1:30)! Depend on Him! He has made you holy!

Jesus, your Brother!

You have been predestined to be like Jesus so that He can be your Brother (Rom. 8:29).

"Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers." Hebrews 2:11

As a son of God, you have been made holy; you have been justified and you have been glorified (Heb. 2:10; Rom. 8:30). That is Good News! Rejoice in your holiness and don't allow the enemy to deceive you and rob you of your joy!

Recommended reading: "The Believer's Secret of Holiness" by Andrew Murray.

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Are you holy?

"But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: 'be holy, because I am holy.'" 1 Peter 1:15,16

God is holy.

God is holy because of who He is and not because of what He does. God is holy because He is like no other god. He is beyond compare!

"'To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?' asks the Holy One" Isaiah 40:25

It is the "otherness" of God that defines His holiness. He is completely (wholly) good, pure, loving, righteous, just, light, merciful, gracious, etc, because that is His holy nature!

God makes holy.

In the Old Testament we read about how God brings the people of Israel out of Egypt to set them apart from all other nations as His people - a people belonging to God and set apart for Him. God thus makes His people holy by setting them apart. That which is set apart for God is sanctified - made holy.

For example, when the priests were ordained in the OT, they were set apart with blood and oil (see Leviticus 8). Likewise the believer is set apart and made holy by the blood of Jesus and the oil of the Holy Spirit.

Through faith in Jesus, the believer is sanctified by His blood and by the gift of the Holy Spirit! 1 Peter 1:1,2

The believer is therefore holy! He is sanctified. He cannot become holy in his own effort. It is God who sets the believer apart and makes Him holy. Holiness cannot be attained!

The New Testament calls God's people, saints because they have been sanctified and set apart for God. Believers cannot become saints by their own effort. They are made saints by the mercy and grace of God! See Eph. 1:1,15

"This sainthood is not an attainment, it is a state into which God in grace calls men.." W.E. Vine

You are holy!

As a believer, you are holy by nature, regardless of whether you sin or not! Your obedience or your disobedience does not change the fact that God has set you apart for Himself. As God's holy people we are called to live holy lives - lives that express our separateness for God. Paul writes,

"To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy.." 1 Cor. 1:2

The believer is called to live a holy life because he is holy and not in order to become holy!

Made holy to reveal God's holiness

God's purpose in setting apart a people for Himself, by bringing His people out of darkness, is to reveal Himself through them as the only true God - the Holy One!

"..you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." 1 Peter 2:9,10

"Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I show myself holy through you before their eyes." Ezekiel 36:23

Called to holiness.

The believer is called to live a holy life because God is holy. The believer's holiness is expressed by his separateness from the world, the flesh and the devil. As God's holy people, we are in this world but not of this world.

"My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified." John 17:15-19

Through the believer's union with Christ, he is made holy so that he will reveal the One to whom he is joined - the Holy One (see 1John 4:15).

Revealing God.

The way we live holy lives, as God's holy people, is to be like Jesus (1 John 2:6)! We reveal God's otherness as we reveal His nature - His love, mercy, kindness, patience, goodness, grace, forgiveness, etc.

As God's holy people "let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God!" 2 Cor. 7:1

Saints, be holy because God is holy and you are holy!

Are you a worshipper?

Jesus says, "..a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:23,24The Father is looking for worshippers!

What is a worshipper and how does one worship the Father?

To answer that question we need to understand what true worship is.

Definition of worship

The word worship means, to give worth to someone or something. The Greek word that we translate as worship is the word proskuneo and essentially means to kiss the feet. So we see that to worship is to humble ourselves before the one or thing we value. In other words, worship is our response to that which we value most.

Living as worshippers

We worship with our lives. In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul writes,

"Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship." Romans 12:1Paul is urging us to respond to God with our lives in a way that pleases God. Paul then continues and says,

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2
In other words, in response to God, the believer should live a life set apart for God (a holy life) and no longer live a selfish and self-centred, wordly life! When the believer lives his life because of God and for God, he lives his life as a worshipper. To live one's life in response to God is to live in "the fear of the Lord" (see Acts 9:31). The worshipper desires to know God's will so that he can live his life accordingly - a life set apart for God and pleasing to Him. The more we lay down our will to do God's will, the more we honour Him (give Him worth) and live as the worshippers the Father seeks.

Worship, then, involves our entire existence.

Living from mercy and not for mercy

True worshippers live to give God honour because of what He has done for them. Sadly,many Christians live their lives trying to meet un unreachable standard of perfection in order to please God, not understanding that they have been made perfect in Christ "for the praise of God's glory" (Heb. 10:10,14; Eph. 1:12).
"You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." 1 Peter 2:9,10
We have received mercy so that as God's people, set apart for Him, we will live lives that honour Him. God has delivered His people from self-consciousness and sin-consciousness in order that we become blameless and God-conscious, living to honour God (Heb.9:14; Col.1:22). Sin "entangles" because it gets our eyes off Jesus and onto ourselves again and we allow the enemy to bring us under false condemnation as he accuses us. There is however "no condemnation for those who are in Christ" and so we must deal with our sin quickly in order to get our eyes back on Jesus (see Heb. 12:1,2; Rom. 8:1).
"..because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them." Heb. 7:24,25
Therefore Jesus is able to keep us blameless to the end (1 Cor. 1:8)!

Worship in song

When we talk about worship, most of us think of the songs we sing on a Sunday or whenever we meet as a church. Let's have a look at worship in the context of our meetings in view of what we have seen so far.

Response to revelation

Worship in song is a response to the revelation of God. The psalmists, for example, wrote their prayers, songs and poems to express their response to the revelation of God they had received.
King David writes,

"Ascribe to the Lord, O mighty ones, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness." Psalm 29:1,2
 
King David had a revelation of God's holiness and the greatness of the Lord's glory and strength. In response to that revelation, King David encourages the saints to worship God.

Similarly, the songs we sing in our church meetings are the song-writers' response to their knowledge of God and the revelation they have received of Him. So really, most congregations are singing someone else's response to God. The worshipper may be able to identify with the response he is singing or he may just go through the motions of singing the words.

True worship songs

There are many ways one can respond to God but not all responses are true worship. If we consider that true worship involves giving worth to God and being God-conscious rather than self-conscious, then true worship songs will be focused on God. That may seem obvious but if you look at the songs that many churches sing, you will find that the person sung about, is not God but the one who is singing the song! That doesn't mean that there is something wrong with the song; it simply means it isn't true worship.

For me or for God?

I love Stuart Townend's song, "Pour over me" but I wouldn't sing it to worship God because the song is about what I want God to do for me. It's a great song that ministers to me but it's not worship. Compare it to the words that are sung in heaven:

"Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.'

Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

'You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." Rev. 4:8-11The four living creatures responded to the revelation of God by speaking to Him (not about Him) and by laying down their crowns before the throne. Similarly true worshippers lay down their selfish needs and self-centredness as they fix their eyes on the Lord to honour Him.

Revelation leads to manifestation

We are experiencing an ever-increasing manifestation of God's presence in our meetings as we truly worship Him. As we "fix our eyes on Jesus" He reveals Himself to us more and more and as He does so, we respond in worship. It's wonderful!

Our responsibility

Sadly many believers struggle to respond to God without the use of "ready" songs because they aren't used to worshipping God in the secret place with their own words and responding to their Father personally in their own words.

Worship in spirit and in truth

The Father is looking for worshippers. He is looking for those who will worship Him from the depths of their being and with a genuine heart. He hates lip-service and longs for His sons and daughters to draw near in reverence and awe and to live holy lives that honour Him (Mark 7:6; Heb.10:19-23 ).

Draw near!
I want to encourage you to draw near to God and to worship Him. Use your own words to declare your love for Him and your admiration of Him. As He reveals Himself to you, simply speak what He reveals and respond with your heart and your mouth. Avoid the temptation of asking Him for something and bringing the focus back on yourself. Keep your eyes on Him and join in the song of heaven. Learn to worship God in the secret place and you will help the church draw nearer to God as you worship together in spirit and in truth.

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What are you waiting for (part 2)?

Many Christians are waiting for God to touch their lives. They either seek His touch in prayer or they attend meetings where they hope to be touched by God in the meeting or through somebody. God certainly wants His people to seek His face but I believe that many believers don't have a clear idea of exactly what they are looking for and what they will do once they have found it. Whether we call it "a touch from God" or "a move of God" or "revival" I think we need to have a clear understanding of what that looks like and what it will mean for our lives, once we've experienced it.

I believe we need to honestly ask ourselves why we want to experience God. Here are a few common reasons:

I want to know for sure that God exists
I want to know personally, that God loves me
I want to experience God's power so that I receive His power to do His work
I believe I need an experience to know that I have been filled (baptised) with the Holy Spirit

Unfortunately these reasons are derived from wrong teaching, our interpretation of others' experience, unbelief and a lack of knowledge of God and His Word. Let's have a look these reasons more carefully.

I want to know for sure that God exists

God expects His creation to believe in Him even though we don't see Him in the physical. Creation is evidence enough of His existence.

"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." Rom. 1:18-20

"Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Heb. 11:1

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Heb. 11:6

"We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen." 2 Cor. 4:18

"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.." 1 Peter 1:8

"Jesus told him, 'Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.'" John 20:29

"For we live by faith, not by sight." 2 Cor. 5:7

Clearly then, seeking a touch from God for proof of His existence is simply unbelief and doesn't please God.

I want to know personally, that God loves me

Many of us have been in meetings where some people are clearly touched by God in a glorious way and we wonder why God doesn't give us the same experience. Consequently we leave disappointed and left out. However, that kind of thinking is based on the assumption that an experience like that is proof of God's love. It isn't!

God has already proven His love for us in giving us His Son. He demonstrated His love for us when He lay down His life for us.

"God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Rom. 5:8

If we seek an experience from God for proof of His love for us, we are again walking in unbelief. God has already demonstrated His love for us. Why do we need more proof? Was John lying when he wrote,

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are." 1 John 3:1

Either we believe or we don't.

I want to experience God's power so that I receive His power to do His work.

Somewhere along the line many of us have come to believe that the believer needs a "second blessing" or needs to be "baptised in the Holy Spirit" before he can do the works Jesus did. Let me ask you, "Can you receive God without His wisdom?" Then why do some of us believe we can receive God without His power? Jesus said that the believer will receive power when he receives the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8) - we cannot receive the Holy Spirit without His power. Either we believe we have received the Holy Spirit and are therefore able to do the work of Jesus or not. Paul reprimands the Galatians for thinking that they had to earn God's power.

"Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?....Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?" Gal. 3:2-5

Seeking God for something you have already received is unbelief. We have received the fullness of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

"..you have been given fullness in Christ.." Col. 2:10

The believer is united to Christ and has therefore received every spiritual blessing in Christ, including His power (see Eph. 1:3; 1 Cor. 1:24; 1 John 4:15; 2 Peter 1:3 etc).

Believe you have received!

I believe I need an experience to know that I have been filled (baptised) with the Holy Spirit.

This is a similar reason to the one just discussed. Jesus baptises the believer into His Spirit - into God! The Christian does not still need more of God but needs to learn to manifest the fullness of God by faith. The believer's life is about "..attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13) and not receiving more of God as though God gives Himself in bits and pieces.

Through faith in Jesus we are joined to Him and immersed into His fullness. Believe you have received!

So we can see that many of us may have the wrong reasons for wanting a "touch from God!" God wants us to seek His face and He wants us to experience Him because we believe in Him and have received His fullness and not in order to believe in Him and in order to receive more from Him.

I want to encourage you to begin thanking God for what you have received and trusting Him to use you as you step out in faith, believing you have received.

Can gifts of the Spirit be imparted?

It seems to me that many believers have the idea that God gives people certain gifts that they are at liberty to impart to others. Believers then flock to men and women with a dynamic ministry, hoping to receive some gift they did not have before. Certainly we can benefit from the manifestation of the Spirit's work through one another, but can gifts of the Spirit be imparted?

What does Scripture say?

• Every believer receives the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus. Eph. 1:13,14


• Every believer receives every spiritual blessing in Christ because the fullness of Christ lives in him. Eph. 1:3; Col. 2:10; 1 Cor. 1:4-7


• The believer lives in the Giver and the Giver lives in him. 1 John 4:15


• Jesus, the Giver, by His Spirit, distributes gifts as HE determines. 1 Cor. 12:11; Eph. 4:7


• The manifestation of different gifts through different believers is the revelation of the work of the Giver through us. Rom. 12:6

What about Timothy?

"..stir into flame the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind." 2 Tim. 1:6,7 (KJV)

• 
  
  Timothy received the gift of the Holy Spirit when Paul laid his hands on him and not a particular spiritual gift (see Acts 8:18 & 19:6). The context shows us that Paul is referring to the stirring up of the spirit of love, power and of self-control - all manifestations of the Holy Spirit in Timothy. 2 Tim. 1:6,7; Gal. 5:22

What about Paul?

"For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; that is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me." Rom. 1:11,12

• Paul is saying that he longs to see the Church in Rome to encourage them with his faith. The manifestation of the Holy Spirit in Paul's life was to strengthen and build up the Body of Christ wherever he went. Eph. 3:2; Col. 2:2


• Note that the word translated "impart" here means "to share". Paul shared his gifts with the Church to encourage the Body in their faith.

So, in answer to, "Can gifts of the Spirit be imparted?" I would say, NO. What we can do, however, is encourage one another in our faith to trust God to manifest His Spirit through us as we make ourselves available for "the master's use." Even now I am using my gifts to encourage you to believe that you have received fullness in Christ and that God will use you to be an encouragement to the Body of Christ as you use your gifts to serve others.

Don't run after what you think you are lacking - use what is in your hand and eagerly desire a greater manifestation of the Giver in you!

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