A Serious Commitment

BY VARIOUS TERMS the Bible teaches that there are two classes of Christians: those who “abide in Christ,” and those who “abide not”; those who are “walking in the light,” and those who “walk in darkness”; those who “walk by the Spirit,” and those who “walk as men”; those who “walk in newness of life,” and those who “walk after the flesh”; those who have the Spirit “in” and “upon” them, and those who have the Spirit “in” them; those who are “spiritual” and those who are “carnal”; those who are “filled with the Spirit,” and those who are not. All this has to do with the quality of daily life of saved people, and is in no way a contrast between the saved and the unsaved. Where there is such emphasis in the Bible as is indicated by these distinctions there is a corresponding reality. There is, then, a possibility of a great transition for those who are carnal into the reality of true spiritual living. The revelation concerning this possible transition, with all of its experiences and blessings, is taken seriously only by serious believers who are faithfully seeking a God-honoring daily life. To such thee is a boundless joy and consolation in this gospel of deliverance, power and victory. He That is Spiritual, L. S. Chafer (Chapter Three).

In the next few days, many will make a New Year’s resolution. Some will seek to lose weight, eat healthier, get their blood pressure down, spend more time with their family, and maybe do something wonderful they had never considered this next year. The final word in this statement is resolution. Resolution is defined as: a firm decision to do or not to do something. The problem with most resolutions is that they nothing more than fleeting thoughts which don’t hold over time. Did you read the first underlined word of the definition? It is firm. Firm means: having a solid, almost unyielding surface or structure; strongly felt and unlikely to change. So what does that mean about your resolution this year? Is it solid, unyielding, or unlikely to change?

When it comes to walking in the Spirit, there is no difference here either. If this is a resolution you might consider this year, remember there is a corresponding reality. This means that if you begin to determine in your heart this year to walk according to the Spirit of God, it will begin to transform your reality. Your reality (or daily life) will begin to change and look like the One who is leading. Many times, it comes without us noticing the change, while others begin to see it first. I’ve even noticed it the lives of people who are seeking the Lord daily within my own sight, when they had no idea of the transformation which was occurring. Here’s the catch though; as Chafer said above; “The revelation concerning this possible transition, with all of its experiences and blessings, is taken seriously only by serious believers who are faithfully seeking a God-honoring daily life.”

So what does your resolution look like now? Is it serious? Can God take you serious today? Is it solid, unyielding, or unlikely to change? This is my commitment this year to Jesus. I want to walk in the Spirit this year with so much solid and unyielding faith that my relationship with Jesus Christ gives me a boundless joy and consolation in this gospel of deliverance, power and victory! Will you join me?

Baptism of the Spirit

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.” 1 Cor. 12:13 NASB

Being a member in the body of Christ, anticipates service; but service is always related to another ministry than the baptism of the Spirit. Since the baptism with the Spirit is the organic placing of the believer into Christ, it is that operation of God which establishes every position and standing of the Christian. No other divine undertaking in salvation is so far reaching in it effect. It is because of this new union to Christ that a Christian can be said to be “in Christ,” and being “in Christ” he partakes of all that Christ is, His life, His righteousness, and His glory. The unbeliever, who is “without Christ,” enters completely into this union with Christ the moment he believes. L. S. Chafer, He That is Spiritual.

Our baptism in the Spirit of God is dependent upon one thing; our belief. Yet so many people think there is something they must do to earn this blessing from God. As this week started a man told his story whereby he was forced to go to church all his childhood. As he entered adulthood, he became more and more rebellious against the things of God because he was forced to go to church. When he left his childhood home, he decided he would never go back to church. Over the next several years, he went and did the things he wanted to do; sadly to his own demise. Little did he know that in the near future, he would find himself inside a jail cell wondering where it all went wrong? This now, 40 year old man, told of his mother’s plea to consider salvation and told him she would continue to pray for him. She told him she didn’t want to see him separated from her in a terrible place called hell. He said while he was incarcerated he began to read the Bible again and discover some things for himself; a time where many men consider their eternity before God. He now had a desire to change things and try to recover the years he lost while wandering from God. The thing is though; he didn’t know God. He knew of God through years of church, but never received Christ in saving faith. After a while, while mentioning his mother’s plea for his salvation, he said he didn’t know how to accept God or how to get to Heaven. After all these years of hearing the message of Jesus Christ, he missed the invitation… With others in the room who heard his plight, we asked him if he wanted by faith in Christ, to receive the forgiveness he sought. He said, “Very much so.” We led him through a prayer, in faith, and he received Jesus Christ on Monday morning at 10:00 AM. He was now freed from religion and entered into relationship with Jesus Christ.

You see, we all hear about the possibilities and the power God can and will place into our lives, but I believe many of us miss the change that is necessary to receive that power. The baptism of the Spirit of God is received through belief. We are all looking for the power in our life but yet missing the One who gives it to us. This man missed the message of Jesus his entire life and only learned it at age 40. What a way to celebrate this season than to know you can experience the power of God this Christmas season.

Oh, and by the way, I asked him to call his mother and tell her he had received Jesus as his Savior. What a celebration for any parent who has been praying for their child!

The Fuel for Your Life

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (NASB95) “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”

A holy life and walk, which must always depend on the enabling power of the Spirit, is as much demanded of one believer as of another. There is not one standard of life for one class of believers, and another standard of life for another class of believers. If there is a child of God who has not the Spirit in him, he must, with all reason, be excused from these responsibilities which anticipate the power and presence of the Spirit. The fact that God addresses all believers as though they possess the Spirit is sufficient evidence that they have the Spirit. He That is Spiritual, L. S. Chafer.

It is hard enough to live in the real world each day with all that life throws our way. It is even harder for the Christian to live the life God intended in the flesh; in fact, it is impossible. Yet many Christians try to do it every single day. Chafer says that all of us are grouped into one class of Christianity, and that is it. There is not but one class of Christian. Yet many Christians each day try to live this life in many of their own ways each day. This is why we have half-hearted congregations in our churches today and many which are powerless. Few members of the congregation may lead a life and walk in the Spirit according to the Bible’s program for their lives, while others deem what is important in their life and relative to the Scriptures and never apply any. Yet sadly for many, these people live lives in the same futility they lived prior to their own salvation; doing the same thing and expecting differing results. The previous two cases experience great frustration with the Christian life and question their salvation at times.

While speaking to a group of prisoners in jail this Monday, I showed them to see a chart from college some years back. It was presented by Dr. Rodney Dempsey at Liberty University about Spiritual Development.

I would like to share that with you today. And even today, this blog might become quite long in explaining this process I think it might bring some perspective to the Christian life.

If you note the bottom of the triangle is larger. The top is smaller than the bottom as well. We all enter into salvation by saving faith in Jesus Christ on the bottom rung of this illustration. All who come to Christ come through salvation and eternal security. This is the first rung.

If you note something else, the triangle and the other rungs of the ladder get smaller while they go upward toward the ultimate goal of each Christian life, which is Glory to God. This means that fewer and fewer Christians ever experience a life of Sanctification, Serving, Giving, Fruitfulness and ultimately a life which brings Glory to God. This is pictured in the rungs getting smaller as the triangle progresses toward the top.

The problem with this illustration though is not the process; but the person. The process mentioned above is God’s plan for the Christian life. Unfortunately, Christians do not or have not entered into the second tier (Sanctification/ Spiritual Growth) or as I like to term it as Discipleship and if they do, there are fewer than those who enter into salvation. And the list of those who are moving toward the ultimate goal gets smaller and smaller as you progress up the ladder. This is why we have a half-hearted congregation. They have never experienced the life Jesus intended here on this earth.

As Chafer mentions in his writing above, all these are powered by the Spirit’s presence as he notes, “A holy life and walk, which must always depend on the enabling power of the Spirit.” You see, most Christians have a problem with Spiritual growth. It involves the Spirit’s power to grow though. This takes two simple words most Christians are afraid to hear though: Time and Work (as quoted by the late Dr. Howard Hendricks). By investing in these two, time and work within God’s Word, vast amounts of personal growth occur. This is because the Spirit of God is the power and teacher to us as we learn more about our loving and personal God. He is the key to our locked life. He is the one who brings us into intimacy with a loving God.

Today, I encourage you to take a look at the chart above and honestly take a hard look at where you might be today. It is never too late to start! Then, this season you will begin to understand the valuable gift God gave to the world and the high price it cost Him!