Joshua and Judges: The doctrine of leadership part 84 - Essential qualities of leadership: The filling of the Spirit; Experiential sanctification; Heb 12:1-4.

Title: Joshua and Judges: The doctrine of leadership part 84 - Essential qualities of leadership: The filling of the Spirit; Experiential sanctification; HEB 12:1-4.

 

Announcements / opening prayer:  

Thursday night's class was loaded yesterday and is mp3 only. Latest video has been uploaded. Happy Mother's Day.

 

 

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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

This is the joy of fulfilling the life for which you have been  created. The legitimate reward for the believer is the joy of fulfilling God's plan. It is actually a foretaste of the unhindered blessings that will occur when we are face to face with our Lord who has triumphed over the flesh, the world, and the devil.

 

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.

 

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.

 

GAL 3:3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?

 

In meeting the impossible issues of the Christian life, are we attempting it on a works basis or a faith basis? Is it fighting the good fight of the flesh or the good fight of faith?

 

There is a wide difference between fighting to do what God alone can do and fighting to maintain an attitude of dependence upon Him to do what He alone can do. I must attempt to say no to sin and evil and yes to good, but with complete trust on God the Holy Spirit within me to accomplish it. The new creature, the word of God, the Holy Spirit, the plan from the Father, the life from Christ are all designed to do this. The flesh cannot do it.

 

The pages of scripture are abundantly clear that we are to deny sin and evil and produce good in complete trust on God the Holy Spirit to accomplish both.

 

HEB 12:1 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

 

HEB 12:2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author [Prince Ruler] and perfecter [completer] of faith, who for the joy [instead of the present joy] set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

 

HEB 12:2

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Prince Ruler and Completer of faith, who instead of His present joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

 

Occupation with Christ is abiding in Christ. It is the joy of walking in unbroken and intimate fellowship with Him. Every believer lives with this privilege and it can never be taken from him.

 

HEB 12:3 For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart.

 

HEB 12:4 You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin

 

There is never a reason to give up, no matter how heavy the pressure may seem. The eyes of our heart tend to turn away from Christ and fixate themselves on the flesh and the world. Through the Spirit of God the believer must fight the good fight of faith and fix his eyes on the Prince Ruler and the Completer of faith.

 

We are to have a constant attitude of relying upon the Spirit, which takes constant attention to who we are in Christ and what that life truly is.

 

We are to have an attitude that is relying upon the Holy Spirit at all times. It is the Christian way of life and this is the way. It is not a part time thing. It takes constant attention alertness to only see ourselves as in the glory of Christ and to reject worldly and fleshly concepts that are contrary to that life.  

 

LUK 12:35 "Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps alight.

 

LUK 12:36 "And be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks.

 

LUK 12:37 "Blessed are those slaves whom the master shall find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.

 

LUK 12:38 "Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

 

This is likely speaking of the second coming and many want to limit it to that event, but I don't see how it doesn't apply to us now in illustrating the point of alertness and readiness. In commenting on a similar passage in MAT 25:1-13, the parable of the ten virgins, Fruchtenbaum states: "The emphasis on [this] parable is on both watchfulness and readiness. I think the same is true here. The virgins represent neither the Church nor Israel in this parable, but simply serve to illustrate a point." It is not true that the Tribulational saints need to be watchful and ready, while we are not to be.

 

As the tribulational saints will be alert to His Second coming, so we, who do not know when the Rapture will happen, are alert to living day by day being filled with the Spirit, walking by means of the Spirit.

 

ACT 20:29-31

"I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. "Therefore be on the alert

 

1TH 5:5-6

for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.

 

1PE 5:8

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

 

1CO 16:13-14

Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.