WBS.186
FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP
THE HOLY
SPIRIT - VI
Exodus 32:17 And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they
shouted, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp.
18 And he
said, It is not the voice of them that shout for mastery, neither is it the
voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the noise of them that sing do I
hear.
Might relates to one’s ability to overpower and to
overthrow another’s kingdom and to maintain mastery over it once it has been
conquered. The Holy
Spirit is the Spirit of Might. He is the
power of IAUE to conquer any enemy kingdom, and to overthrow its works.
Last week, we began our investigation into one
aspect of the Holy Spirit as defined by the prophet Yeshayahu (Isaiah 11:2);
that He is the Spirit of MIGHT.
Personally, I believe it is the mistranslation
of the Greek word “parakletos” in the Gospel of John that has
worked to conceal this aspect of the Holy Spirit. (In fairness to the original translators, the word “Comforter” did not
mean 400 years ago, what it does today.) The idea of
the Holy Spirit being our “comforter” is
extraordinarily misleading; and calms us to the point of inactivity. It is a selfish concept that caters to our
flesh. IAUE did not send His Spirit to
stroke our hair and say, “There, there, my little one. Don’t worry.
Everything will be okay.” No, He
sent His MIGHT unto us so that WE can destroy the works of the enemy of man’s
soul and never need to have another to have to console us.
Exodus 32:17 And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they
shouted, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp.
18 And he said, It is not the voice of them that shout for
mastery, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the
noise of them that sing do I hear.
The very first time in Scripture that this
word “might” (geburah)
is used is found in this passage. These
verses occur when Moses descended from Mt. Sinai after having met with IAUE to
receive the tablets of the Ten Commandments.
Waiting for him at a lower level of the mountain was Joshua. There was a tumultuous noise in the camp of
Israel below; and Joshua thought it sounded like the sounds of war. Moses explained that the noise was not the “shout for mastery.”
This word “mastery” is *geburah.”
In this context it refers to the shouts of triumph that would come from
an army having conquered its enemy in battle.
The first focus of power/might when relating
it to the Spirit of Might, is that the Holy Spirit is the might of IAUE to
conquer the enemy. NO enemy can stand
before the Might of IAUE. No army can
stand before His army. It isn’t even a
contest. The chariots alone of IAUE are “ten thousand time ten thousand and
thousands of thousands.” That is over 100 million chariots; and these are just
the angels of IAUE. The might of His
angelic host cannot be put down by any enemy in existence; and yet this angelic
might does not compare to the might of IAUE’ own Spirit; and He gave HIS Spirit
unto us. He also gave His angels to
minister to those who are the heirs of salvation (Hebrews 1:13-14); so we have
the might of the Holy Spirit working through us; and the might of IAUE’s armies
working around us and for us. Why would
we ever need a “comforter?” We
are empowered to comfort the lost, the hurting, the afflicted and the
downcast. We are empowered to set the
captives free. It is not we who need a
comforter; it is those who are still oppressed by the enemy that our Master
Yahushua conquered.
Acts 1:8 And ye shall receive power after that the Holy Spirit has
come upon you…
The disciples and apostles of the Master were
told NOT to go out and begin preaching the gospel, yet. They were instructed to wait until they
received the enablement of the Spirit.
Specifically, they were told to anticipate the Spirit of Might to come
upon them; the Spirit against which no enemy can stand? Is that how you think of yourself as a
disciple of Messiah? Do you think
yourself weak in the face of the enemy?
Do you see yourself “under the circumstances” of life; or do you see
yourself united with a conqueror against which all circumstances must bow and
pay homage?
We need our minds renewed to comprehend how
great the Father’s gift is to us; and to know exactly WHY He sent us His own
Spirit.
Luke 4:18 The
Spirit of IAUE is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to
the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to
the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that
are bruised,
19 To
preach the acceptable year of IAUE. (Yeshayahu 61:1-2)
Remember, we mentioned this passage last week.
The Spirit of IAUE was upon Yahushua.
What did the Spirit enable the Master to do? Through Yahushua, the Spirit healed all
manner of sickness and disease releasing the brokenhearted from their hopeless
conditions, brought liberty to those held captive by demonic forces, opened the
eyes of the blind, freed man from the works of the devil. In what capacity do we see the Spirit of IAUE
doing these things through the Master?
It is as the Spirit of Might. The
power of the Holy Spirit was focused on one thing: overthrowing the enemy and ruling in conquest
over him.
Acts 10:38 How IAUE anointed Yahusua of Nazareth with the
Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing
all that were oppressed of the devil; for IAUE was with him.
In 1971, I was a student at the University of
Texas. I had become a member of an
interdenominational Christian singing group called The Samaritans. The director’s wife wanted the group to host
a Bible study for the group; and she decided they would study the Book of
Acts. On that first evening, they
reached this verse.
Acts 1:8 And ye shall receive power after that the Holy Spirit has
come upon you…
It did not even register upon them; and they
proceeded to read the next verse, when I stopped them and asked the simple
question, “What kind of power do you suppose he was talking about?” The answers the attendees offered were
indicative of the blindness imposed upon them by their various denominations.
“I could not make it through the day without
the power of the Holy Spirit.”
“I could not get through all my classes
without the power of the Holy Spirit.”
“Without the power of the Holy Spirit I don’t
know how I could do my classes and work.”
Every answer was self-centered. The power was defined in the comfort they
received from the Holy Spirit. Every
answer was also a result that was being achieved by 50,000 other students at
the University who did not even know Messiah or the Spirit of IAUE. Those who did not know Messiah were getting through
the day, getting through their classes, were getting through school work and
their jobs; and that is exactly what I told them. So, they asked me what I thought it meant. They really didn’t even have room in their
heads for my answer. They simply had no concept
of the power to which this verse referred.
I answered, “I think to answer the question, you have to look at what
they did after they received the Holy Spirit.
They healed the sick, they healed the lame, they raised the dead, they
cast out demons, and they destroyed the works of the devil.” Within the weeks to follow, every member of
that Bible study either left the group, or they were filled with the Holy
Spirit and began to do the works of Yahushua in their lives.
The Spirit of IAUE is the Spirit of
Might. The power of the Spirit is an
overcoming power. It is a warring
power. It is a power that is vehemently
and aggressively opposed to the works of the devil. It is a power that smites
its enemy and puts it down, and rules over it, giving it absolutely no
chance. It does not negotiate with its
enemy. It destroys its enemy.
What was the gospel message in its purest and simplest
form?
Matthew 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to
preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of
heaven is at hand.
Mark 1:15
And saying, The time is fulfilled, and
the kingdom of God
is at hand: repent ye,
and believe the gospel.
The
gospel was a command to repent…to cease disobeying the will of IAUE and His
right to rule. They were, after all, the
people called by His name. Messiah’s
gospel was a warning that the Kingdom of IAUE was close at hand. Consider it as if someone ran into your town
and began screaming at the top of his lungs, “His army is approaching! They are 30 miles away and coming this way!” Now let’s also consider that you KNOW
the crier is talking about the King whose domain includes the land upon which
you live; and you KNOW that his army is invincible; and though the King is renowned
for his benevolence, goodness and mercy, He had one simple rule. Do his will.
Doing his will is exactly what you have NOT been doing. So, the good news rings out, “Repent.” It is a chance, an opportunity to be restored
into right relationship with the King.
If we accomplish that restoration, we need not fear the approaching
army; for we will be recognized as the faithful and true.
Mark 6: 7 And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth
by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
13 And they cast out many devils,
and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.
How did Messiah preach this gospel? How did he teach his disciples to proclaim
it? He did it by demonstrating the
Spirit of Might. Both he and his
disciples demonstrated the benevolence, the goodness and the mercy of the King
by setting the people free of the works of the enemy that had twisted their
minds and their bodies away from loving the King and doing His will. They demonstrated the nature of the King;
that He was not desirous of judging them for their wickedness. They could be embraced by His love if they
simply repented and let Him love them.
How do you get to the love of IAUE? You get there through the Spirit of IAUE’s
might who conquers every enemy of IAUE in your life. Disciples, we must move past this idea of the
Holy Spirit simply being a comforter to us.
We should be the comforters of those around us by demonstrating the
Spirit of Might who is in our lives; setting the captives free and advancing
the gospel while the Kingdom is still approaching. Once it is here, there is no longer time for
the lost to be found in right standing with the King.
Kingdom
heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the
performance of the will of IAUE.
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