Joshua and Judges: The doctrine of leadership part 83 - Essential qualities of leadership: The filling of the Spirit; Experiential sanctification; Heb 12:1-4.

Title: Joshua and Judges: The doctrine of leadership part 83 - Essential qualities of leadership: The filling of the Spirit; Experiential sanctification; HEB 12:1-4.

 

Announcements / opening prayer:  

 

 

The submission to the will of God is further highlighted by the attitude of the first rebellion in God's universe, ISA 14:13-14.

 

ISA 14:12 "How you have fallen from heaven,

O star of the morning, son of the dawn!

You have been cut down to the earth,

You who have weakened the nations!

 

ISA 14:13 "But you said in your heart,

'I will ascend to heaven;

I will raise my throne above the stars of God,

And I will sit on the mount of assembly

In the recesses of the north.

 

ISA 14:14 'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High.'

 

EZE 28:15 … 17

"You were blameless in your ways

From the day you were created,

Until unrighteousness was found in you.

 

"Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;

You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.

 

To be spiritual we must not say No to God. We must not quench the Spirit.

 

The two conditions of do not grieve the Spirit and do not quench the Spirit are negative in character, but walk by the Spirit is a positive attitude of reliance upon the presence and power of the indwelling Spirit.

 

Principle: The church age believer has the highest standard of experiential sanctification placed upon him, hence it is only attainable by walking in the Spirit.

 

The OT saints had a pretty high standard of life placed upon them by God. However, it is not as near as high as that which is demanded of the church age believer. The standard of life found in the NT demonstrates that it is attainable only by walking in the Spirit.

 

While some of the commands of the law of Moses may be taken to be equally impossible standards, there is a distinction. The law of Moses was designed as a means of condemnation. The standards of grace in the present age are designed for sanctification.

 

This emphasizes the understanding of dispensations. To put ourselves under the law is to reject the grace of God as the Galatians did.

 

What man could not do under the law, with the enablement provided then, man can do under grace by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

The effect of these truths is that the Christian is responsible for a life empowered by the Spirit as the saints were not in the previous dispensations, when the Spirit was not as freely bestowed.

 

This is vital to understand since it is not a life of higher moral character but it is a heavenly life. Surely, the highest moral character is included, but that is still yet of the earth and in reference to the earth. The true capacity in this life is the heavenly fruit of God within the believer and its manifestation through him.

 

As high as the virtues are, including the sacrifices, the laying down of life, the servitude, just as high is the love, joy, and peace of this life.

 

This gets to the heart of sanctification.

 

Sanctification:

Positional - set apart unto God forever.

Experiential - set apart unto God in time in holy living.

Ultimate - set apart unto God in heaven in ress body.

 

Our subject refers to experiential sanctification which can be summarized by three things.

 

Experiential Sanctification:

1. Being yielded to God.

2. Deliverance from the power of the sin nature through the power of the Spirit.

3. Growing in grace and knowledge constantly.

 

Walking by the Spirit presumes activity; it is not a defensive stand against the enemy, but a positive approach to the problems of the spiritual life, endeavoring to be active in the will of God as well as resting in His sufficiency. The heart of the matter remains in the continued dependence upon the Spirit to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves, to be yielded to the Spirit in all His guidance, to confess every known sin, and to seek from the Spirit in faith that ministry which will work in us "both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Php 2:13).

 

The walk by the Spirit is a delight to the heart of the believer in which the intimate joys of fellowship with God are known and the fruit of the Spirit is produced in the heart and life.

 

If the spiritual life seems to be a burden then we are ignorant of its deeper meaning or we are living under the wrong power.

 

This is the joy of fulfilling the life for which you have been  created. It is not doing to get something in return other than the joy of fulfillment. Legitimate joy, rather than selfish pleasure, is for all who fulfill what they have been predestined to.

 

Here, indeed, is a foretaste of the unstinted and unhindered blessings that will be ours when we see the glorious face of Him who suffered and rose in triumph from the tomb that we might have victory in a world over which He Himself has triumphed.

 

We must believe that the Spirit will do all that the Scripture says that He will. He leads, we do not. He teaches, we listen and learn. He empowers, we do not fall back on any human power, which almost always centers around arrogance.