WHO AM I? – II (The New Man)

WBS.198

FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP

WHO AM I? – II

The New Man

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Messiah, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

When a person believes that Yahushua died for them, that he was sacrificed in their place; and they believe that he rose from the dead; and they openly profess him to be their Master and Messiah, a creative miracle occurs.  They are “born again.”  They become something brand new; something that did not exist before their declaration of faith in Yahushua Messiah.

In John 3, Yahushua was discussing this miracle with Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews (a member of the Sanhedrin); but Nicodemus could not understand what he was saying.

John 3:3 Yahushua answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of IAUE.

4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?

5 Yahushua answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of IAUE.

6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

The key to understanding what Messiah meant is found in verse 6.  The flesh gives birth to the flesh.  This, Nicodemus understood.  A woman carries a child in her womb and delivers the child by giving it birth; but he could not comprehend “that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” This is the simple mechanics of the new birth, of being born AGAIN.  We are born the first time of the flesh; and we are born the second time of the Spirit. This second birth is a prerequisite both for our seeing and for our entering the kingdom of IAUE.

When a person is born again, he/she becomes “a new creature” in Messiah; and yet, after that creative miracle takes place, they do not look any different.  This is why I have chosen to title this series, “Who Am I?”  Who and what we become in the new birth is not readily apparent to us or to others.  It is something we must discover, something we must learn; and having learned it, we must walk in the revelation of it.

Man is comprised of body, soul and spirit.  We have discussed this in great detail in prior studies.  When you want to ascertain what your body looks like, especially your face and head, you look into a mirror (what the Scriptures refer to as a “glass”).  You can see in the mirror whether or not your hair is in place, if you have blemishes, if you need to shave, if you need to wash, etc.  The moment you walk away from the mirror, the last condition you saw reflected back to you is your best understanding of what you now look like; but of course, a gust of wind can change your hair. Hard work can make you perspire or get dirt or smudges on your face.  Working long hours or straining at a computer screen can redden your eyes.  All manner of activity can change your appearance from what you remember in the mirror.  Any time, however, that you want to know how you look, you can just check it again and again in the mirror.

What about the soul?  How do you know what your soul looks like, or rather, what is its condition?  Introspection can instantly determine if you are angry, upset, rebellious, spiteful, resentful; or if you are happy, peaceful, joyous, elated, calm, serene, etc.  Just as easy as it is to know what your body looks like (you have a mirror to reveal it to you), it is easy to tell what your soul’s condition is.  You need merely to assess your mind, will and emotions as to what they are registering.  You may be speaking nicely to someone, but you know on the “inside” you really do not like the person.  You are always fairly conscious of the state or condition of your soul. Its nature and condition are not unknown to you. You can, however, “forget yourself,” and act or behave out of character to that which are your true feelings or attitudes.

Now, what about the spirit?  You can’t see yourself in the mirror.  You can’t ascertain what your spirit is thinking or feeling by introspection.  Your spirit seems inaccessible to you in every possible way. You know it’s there simply because if it wasn’t, your body would be dead. (“The body without the spirit is dead…” James 2:26)  So, how do we see what is the nature and condition of our spirit?  Is there a mirror that will show it to us?

James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

There is a lot going on in this passage of Scripture.  Ultimately, the heart of it is that we should be doing what we have revealed to us in the Word of IAUE (the Scriptures). We see that instruction being contrasted with a natural man (the physical body) looking at himself in a mirror.  He gets a reflection of his outward condition, and shortly afterwards, he forgets what he saw. Why is this?  It is because the natural man cannot look into a mirror and know what he will look like thirty minutes later. His outward appearance can change.  The natural man looks into a mirror for a “spot check.”  He wants to know what he looks like right now.  He knows there is no point in remembering what he looked like; because he knows it will not remain the same throughout the day.

It is the spiritual man, not the natural man that looks into the mirror of the “perfect law of liberty.”   Basically, James tells us that what the spiritual man sees in that mirror (the revelation that he receives from the Holy Spirit in the word of IAUE), if that man continues, keeps, obeys, does what he sees, will remain with him even when he is no longer looking at it.  The question is, “What does he see?”

2 Corinthians 3:17 Now IAUE is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of IAUE is, there is liberty.

18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of IAUE, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of IAUE

Paul was discussing the fact that under the old covenant, Moses’ face shone with the glory of IAUE, such that he had to put a vail over his face so the people beholding him could not tell when that glory dissipated from his face; because it was temporary in the same way a natural man looking into a mirror only gets a temporary fix on his appearance.  The glory on Moses’ face did not last long.  It was recharged each time he went into the tabernacle to meet with IAUE. 

Paul says that the glory of the new covenant is far more glorious than that of Moses; and that when we look into the “perfect law of liberty” (the word of IAUE) it is like looking into a mirror. It shows us what we look like in the spirit…and what we see is the glory of IAUE.

The new creature we become when we are born again, the new spirit birthed within us, looks like IAUE; because our life is hidden with Messiah Yahushua in IAUE.  We are what the word of IAUE says we are.  The only way to understand the answer to “Who am I?” is to look into the word of IAUE to see what the Holy Spirit says we are.  The Scriptures and the voice of the Holy Spirit is the mirror that reflects to us the image of who we have become once we are in Messiah.

The part in James 1 about doing or continuing in the word of IAUE is critical.  If the Holy Spirit shows us that we are the righteousness of IAUE in Messiah Yahushua (and it does), our soul must embrace that truth and walk in the light of it.  If the mind rejects that image as unreal or not true, then we cannot continue in that and our lives will not be changed into the glory that revelation provides.

We are going to see that our new man is exactly like Yahushua.  We look like him and whatever he has, we have.  Whatever the mirror of the word of IAUE reflects to us that we are and we have…we are and we have.  It may take some time for us to realize the significance of this truth; but once we do, it will transform our lives.

Ephesians 4:24  …put on the new man, which after IAUE is created in righteousness and true holiness.

The apostle tells us to “put on the new man,” and states that the new man has been “created in righteousness and true holiness.”  Most believers do not think of themselves as righteous or holy because they are using the wrong mirror.  They are using the mirror of introspection to spot their unrighteous thoughts and bad attitudes; or they are using a natural mirror to see their blemishes and disobedient behavior. 

If your spouse or your parents were to tell you to go back to your room and change into your “new man” clothes; you would go to your closet and look with total confusion as to what your “new man” clothes were.  How do you “put on” the new man?  What does that mean?  Does that even make sense?

Colossians 3:9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Paul gives us some idea about how to put on the new man in his message to the Colossians. First, before you can put on the new man, you must put off the old man.  You do that by terminating the works of the flesh… cease doing the deeds of the old man. You see, it is all about what we do…just like James said.  We must do the word, we must continue in the word, to put on the new main. The tree is known by its fruit. What we do is a manifestation of who we believe we are.

The new man is put on and is “renewed” (lit., is enabled to grow up) through the knowledge of the one who created us.  We grow up “after the image of him that created” us.  That is what the mirror tells us our spirit looks like. We look like our Father. This is who we are; and what we are; and to the degree that we see it in the mirror of the perfect law of liberty, it will be manifested in what we do.  Our job is to increase in the knowledge of the one who created us and to look at ourselves in this mirror until our soulish man “gets it.”  When it does, we will be transformed by the renewing of the mind.

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Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance of the will of IAUE.

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WHO AM I? – I

WBS.197

FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP

WHO AM I? – I

Dead Man Walking

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Messiah, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Today, we begin a new series of studies. It could be argued that this should have been presented near the very beginning of this blog, nearly four years ago. What we are going to be discussing over the next few weeks is very foundational to genuine discipleship. I am simply going to trust the Holy Spirit’s timing in this matter and believe that now is the time for us to appropriate this message.

A common practice among Christians is to take a single verse of Scripture and build concepts around them that simply do not fit the context of the passage from which they have been extracted. We have learned to do this from the thousands upon thousands of pastors and ministers who take a single verse of Scripture every Sunday morning and preach on it without ever reading the verses before and after it.

For example: “I can do all things through Messiah which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13).  For decades, I have heard believers cite this verse to suggest they can do impossible things; or that they can achieve great results in their endeavors, or overcome demonic obstacles.  In context, Paul was referring to the generosity of the Philippian believers who were the only church that contributed to the support of his ministry.  When the support was there, Paul was able to eat regularly, and travel and fulfill his call to preach the gospel.  When the support was not there, he was able to fast, to do without, to survive conditions of want and need. He was able to thrive or endure because Messiah strengthened him in either circumstance.  This is quite a different concept behind this verse than the context in which we always hear it uttered.

So, too, is our verse for today.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Messiah, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

This verse has a context that is seldom ever applied to the discussion of the verse.  Let’s look at it for a minute.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Messiah constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

16 Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Messiah after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.

Just before Paul declares that those who are in Messiah are new creatures, he declares that because Yahushua died for all, then everyone is dead.  What does that mean? 

Man stands guilty before IAUE.  He was “altogether conceived in sin,” and “death passed upon all men for all have sinned.”  The sentence for committing sin is death.  “The soul that sinneth shall surely die.”  IAUE, however, did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, for the world stood condemned already. Every man was born into this world with a sentence of death written upon him.

In the American prison system, when a man who has been sentenced to death is taken from his cell to be walked to the execution chamber for his sentence to be carried out, he is referred to as a “dead man walking.” Now, try to imagine with me (close your eyes and see this in your mind), every single man, woman and child on this earth, each having committed the capital crime of violating the will of IAUE, being walked from their cells (the bondage of darkness and captivity to sin) to the execution chamber where their sentence is to be carried out. (Picture yourself as one of them, for at one time you were one of them.)  Armies of tens of thousands of the angels of Heaven fill the sky, crying out in massive unison, “Dead man walking!”  You enter the chamber, and you see the device of your execution waiting for you.  The proclamation of your sins and your guilt is read aloud along with the sentence decreed upon you:  “Death.”  Your name is called; but before you can be brought forward to your judgment, another person steps into the chamber in front of you.  His name is Yahushua.  He looks straight into your eyes and says, “I love you;” and he is executed before you.  The sentence upon your life is paid in full. What does this make you?  You were guilty before the Creator.  You were sentenced to death.  Your sentence was carried out.  You are no longer a “dead man walking.”  You, simply are a dead man.    

You sit there in shock, awe, disbelief, wonderment, relief…for three days; and then Yahushua rises from the dead, immortal, untouchable by death ever again.  He looks at you again.  Your eyes look into his; and he says to you, “I love you.  Come and follow me.”  What do you do, now?  Well, you have a choice.  You can remain in your cell in darkness and in bondage to disobedience to IAUE’s will; or you can live for him who died for you. 

Every man, woman and child on the earth, today, once had a contract out on them for death. The assassin has been robbed of his prize because another has legally died in their place. They now have a contract out on them for LIFE; and that contract is executed upon them when they believe on Yahushua Messiah and enter into His resurrection life.  This is the setting, and the context, for Paul’s declaration:

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Messiah, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Yahushua Messiah was born of Mary in Bethlehem and lived 33 years upon the earth.  That is not the one we are “in.”  Yahushua Messiah died upon the tree and was buried.  That is not the one we are “in.”  Messiah Yahushua was raised from the dead and declared to be the Son of IAUE with Power (Romans 1:4).  THAT is the one we are “in.”  We once were dead; but now we are alive in Messiah.  We are something altogether new.  Our cell is gone.  Our darkness is gone.  Out bondage to sin is gone.  All of these old things have passed away.  We do not bring any of the old trappings with us into Messiah; for none of that exists in him.

Colossians 1:13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

IAUE revealed His son to us and drew us unto the person of Yahushua; and when we responded and came unto him, IAUE transferred us out of the authority of darkness and placed us into one realm of His son.  In practical terms, it would be like someone coming into a dark and wicked country ruled by an evil usurper and finding you imprisoned in a jail there.  The person tells you about his benevolent and loving king, and wants you to know that his king already paid in full the sentence that was upon you.  You are only in jail, now, because the evil usurper does not care to let you know that you are free to go. He has left you to rot in jail just because he knows you still think you belong there; and you still think he has authority over you; and that you still think you have no choice but to obey him. (“There is a way that seems right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12, 16:25) The person sharing this good news with you says that you can leave this jail, leave this evil usurper and leave this wicked place on one condition.  You must decide that you will live for the king who died for you and rose again.  You kneel.  You close your eyes; and you say, “Yes. I will live for you, Yahushua, my Master and King.”  You open your eyes to discover you are in a completely different place, filled with righteousness, peace and joy.  The King is standing there looking at you with great joy.  It seems almost impossible to you what has happened; but you have literally been delivered from your bondage.  You have been removed from the evil country and its control over you; and you have been transferred to utterly new surroundings.  Light is everywhere.  The sounds of joy fill the air.  The King is beautiful and glorious.

Then…then, you look at yourself for the first time…and…you can hardly believe your eyes.  What you see is so astonishing, so beyond comprehension, that you say, before you even know the words are leaving your lips.   “WHO AM I?”

That is what we will be answering in the weeks to come.

Be blessed.

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Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance of the will of IAUE.

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THE HOLY SPIRIT – XVI (Good Works)

WBS.196

FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP

THE HOLY SPIRIT – XVI

The Holy Spirit and Good Works

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Messiah Yahushua unto good works, which IAUE hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Two weeks ago, we discussed the anointing of the Holy Spirit; that He anointed us to preach the gospel, to be witnesses. I want to continue with that thought, today.

In our obedience to share our lives with others, the power of the gospel will be present to heal, to deliver and to set the captives free.  The fear of man is what keeps most believers from talking to others about Messiah, who he is, and what he has done in their lives.  Consequently, most of the church is alien to the power of the Holy Spirit.

Many years ago, Father sent me to participate in a church fellowship in Austin, TX.  It was my intention to just sit quietly in the church services and intercede for them; but within two or three weeks, the pastor asked me to be the leader of one of their neighborhood home-groups.  I consented.  The group leaders met with the pastor on Saturday mornings to share what was going on their groups and to draw support or answers from the rest of the group and the pastor if they had any issues or questions. 

One week, I announced in a Saturday group-leaders’ meeting that I needed to leave early as I was to meet with a group of people to discuss spiritual matters with them.  After the following week’s Saturday meeting, we were walking out of the church and one of the group leaders asked how my meeting went last week.  I told him that there were eight people.  The one person who was not a Christian gave his life to Messiah and was born again. All eight of them were filled with the Holy Spirit. I delivered prophetic words to two or three of them; and one elderly lady who was deaf in one ear got her hearing back.  This young group leader said to me, “One of these days we need to talk about that.”  I asked him, “About what?”  He replied, “We sit in there (pointing to the church where we had just convened as leaders of the church) and we talk about all of this; but you actually DO it.”  I looked at him and said, “The difference is, I expect it.”

This is exactly where the Christian church is today.  They hear of people here and there around the globe that experience miracles of healing and deliverance, or who just lead people to the Master; and they are wistful about it, wishing if only it could happen in their lives.  Well, the only reason it doesn’t happen is because of disbelief.

John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

What is the only condition required of us in this verse for the works of the Master, and even greater works, to be done in our lives, today?  It is belief.  Consequently, what is the ONLY thing that prevents the works of Yahushua from being done by us?  It is unbelief.  Yahushua’s part has long since been done.  He went to his Father nearly 2,000 years ago, and sent us the Holy Spirit.  So, if we use this one verse as a sort of text verse, we can readily answer why we do not see healings, deliverances, and all manner of miracles working through our lives.  It is our unbelief.  We can say, “It is our disobedience that we do not attempt to do the works of Yahushua,” but our disobedience simply stems from unbelief.  If we believed, we would do.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Messiah Yahushua unto good works, which IAUE hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Notice that Paul, to whom the revelation of the mystery of the gospel of grace had been given, states plainly that we were created UNTO good works; and that IAUE has “before ordained” that we should walk in them.  The word used in the Greek for “before ordained” (proetoimazo) literally means that He has “prepared them ahead of time” for us to do them.  That does not sound like we have much more of a responsibility than just to call them into being.  How complicated is that?  And yet, we somehow think that we have to have a great measure of faith to cause a healing or deliverance or miracle to happen.  It isn’t about us.  It is about believing that IAUE has already ordered it ahead of time.  We simply need to do our part to call into the natural world what has already been predetermined in the spiritual world.

Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

When was the last time you did this?  When was the last time you provoked someone to love others or to do good works?  Yes, I know that “good works” can also be understood to include visiting the fatherless and the widows in their times of need, to show generosity, to help the helpless, etc.; but it absolutely and necessarily includes the manifestations of the anointing of the Holy Spirit that accompanies our testimony of the gospel.

James 2:18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

Have you ever considered, in reading this passage, to what good works James was referring?  What works can a person do that would demonstrate faith versus works that could be done by others requiring no faith on their part?  That pretty much reduces this verse to referring to the effects of the anointing of the Holy Spirit to heal, deliver and to set the captive free.  These are the works to which James is referring; and it is confirmed by the taunt to the man who says he has faith without works.  There is no way to show workless faith.

Galatians 3:5 He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

We get so caught up in Paul’s defense of the gospel in this chapter that we do not see what is plainly stated. While our focus in this chapter is drawn to our freedom from the law and our deliverance from the curse of the law, we fail to see that Paul used as a proof of his message that the people in their fellowship that work miracles are not working miracles by their obedience to the law.  They are working miracles by their faith.  How many times have you read Galatians 3 and never noticed the casual manner in which Paul refers to miracles being worked by them?

Romans 15:19 Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of IAUE; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Messiah.

Here is another verse that has gone unnoticed by the church for centuries.  Paul did not just preach the gospel. Preaching (witnessing, sharing his testimony of the Truth) was what the Holy Spirit anointed him to do; and signs and wonders accompanied his message, quite literally, everywhere he preached.

1 Cor 2:4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of IAUE.

This was what Paul “expected” when he witnessed everywhere.  Yahushua had told the disciples on the day of his ascension that his disciples would receive power after the Holy Spirit had come upon them. He had trained them during his three years together to understand that the Holy Spirit anoints you to preach…then He releases His power to do signs and wonders.

Mark 16:20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Master working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

T.L. Osborne was a minister of considerable reputation, with signs and wonders following his ministry in scores of different countries.  He was in a meeting of ministers one day, listening to them wail before IAUE asking for more power.  His response was, “We don’t need more power.  We need more gospel.”  There is no problem with power.  There is a problem with preaching.  We have all the power in the universe and beyond residing within us by the Holy Spirit.  The one who actually created the universe is in our lives; so how can it possibly be a lack of power that is the problem in the church.  The problem rests with man’s unbelief.  He refuses to be a witness.  Well, if the Master and King of the Church left us with the message that we would receive power after the Spirit comes upon us; how then can power be an issue?

The power of the Spirit is released in the testimony of Yahushua.  The scripture says, “He shall glorify me.” (John 16:14) This is another way of saying, “When you tell others about me, He will show off and confirm your testimony with signs and wonders.”  Have you ever noticed in the Gospels and in the book of Acts, when a notable miracle was performed, the people did not praise Yahushua, or the apostles, or the disciples who worked the miracle.  They glorified IAUE.  The same will be true when we testify of Yahushua and the Holy Spirit works signs and wonders through us to confirm the message.  The people will glorify Yahushua; and this will bring glory to IAUE.  That’s the plan.  We just need to get out there and DO it.

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Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance of the will of IAUE.

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THE HOLY SPIRIT – XV (The Spirit of the Fear of IAUE)

WBS.195

FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP

THE HOLY SPIRIT – XV 

The Spirit of the Fear of IAUE

Isaiah 11:2 And the spirit of IAUE shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of IAUE;

3  And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of IAUE: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

From my many years of experience, I know that most Christians who read this will be inclined to just sigh and relegate the power of the Spirit to others, because the idea of witnessing terrifies them

Recently, I heard a minister state that the #1 fear among Christians is the fear of speaking in public. How interesting it is that the #1 fear is the one thing that would keep a believer from doing his #1 responsibility as a disciple…to be a witness of Yahushua.  Who knows?  Maybe this is the root cause of why the church is so powerless, today.

We saw in last week’s post that the anointing of the Holy Spirit is released through preaching the gospel, through sharing our testimony and love of Yahushua with others; for it is the gospel that is the power of IAUE unto salvation.  If the church refuses to testify to the world around it, it is left to huddle inside the walls of a building on Sunday mornings to hold regular club meetings and keep what they believe to themselves.  As such, they are due no more respect from society than any other club or secretive organization like the Masons who conduct their secret meetings inside Masonic Lodges.  Besides, it would appear that most really have nothing to offer the world but a story. Just a story is not good enough.  One does not need power to tell just a story.

1 Corinthians 2:4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of IAUE.

Messiah does not expect the world to place its faith in words only. The reason Messiah told his disciples to wait until he sent the Holy Spirit to them is because they needed to receive power; the kind of power that is able to manifest the transcendent authority of the Kingdom of Heaven.

When I was a young boy, my dad would occasionally ask me to walk two blocks down the road to a convenience store to pick up a gallon jug of milk.  Interacting with adult strangers (which would be required to make a purchase at a store) terrified me; but I would do it.  Do you want to know why I would do that which I feared?  You guessed it.  I feared my dad more.

In the passage above where Paul said his preaching was accompanied with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, he began those words with a comment that is quite curious.

1 Corinthians 2:3  And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

Paul was not keen on public speaking either; but he feared IAUE more than he feared man; and in preaching (remember last week’s post) the power of the Holy Spirit was present to demonstrate the truthfulness of the gospel and to manifest the Kingdom of which Paul testified.

Exodus 20:18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.

19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not Elohim speak with us, lest we die.

20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for Elohim is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.

In this passage of Scripture, we see two related but different words for “fear.”  Moses instructed the people to “fear not;” (yare) then he said that what they were witnessing on the mount was intended to put Elohim’s “fear”(yirah) before their faces. The impact of that fear would be an influence upon them that would turn them away from committing sin.  Now, we all are well acquainted with the first kind of fear (yare).  This is the unreasonable fear man has; like the fear of the dark, or the fear of heights, or the fear of public speaking.  The other fear (yirah), the fear of IAUE is a reasoned fear. When we know who IAUE is, we have reason to fear him.  In my illustration above, my reasoned fear of my dad was responsible for my obedience when he asked me to do something that countered my unreasonable fear of interacting with adult strangers. The one fear overcame the other fear and produced obedience within me.

This is exactly what the Holy Spirit does within us as the 7-fold Spirit of IAUE.

Isaiah 11:2 And the spirit of IAUE shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of IAUE;

Notice the pairings of attributes in this verse:  the spirit of wisdom and understanding; the spirit of counsel and might; and the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of IAUE.  It is through our increasing knowledge of IAUE that the fear of IAUE grows within us and protects us from ourselves.

Proverb 1:29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of IAUE:

Proverb 8:13 The fear of IAUE is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

Proverb 14:27 The fear of IAUE is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.

Proverb 16:6  By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of IAUE men depart from evil.

Going back yet once more to my childhood illustration; when asked to do that which I feared (with unreasonable fear), my fear of my dad rendered my choice to obey or disobey no contest.  In the same way, the fear of IAUE renders our obedience an immediate response…even if it causes us to defy an unreasonable fear we might have.

Isaiah 11:3  And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of IAUE: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

The Spirit of IAUE was upon the Master Yahushua Messiah; and the Spirit, in His capacity as the Spirit of the Fear of IAUE made Messiah’s choices immediate and positive.  He was quick to understand what he must do.  There was never an option in Messiah’s mind to disobey IAUE no matter what his eyes saw or his ears heard.  He didn’t counter the will of IAUE with, “Don’t you know we are in Nazareth?  They have known me since childhood.  They are not going to respond well to what you want me to say to them.”  He didn’t say back to IAUE, “I overheard the leaders of the synagogue say they are seeking to kill me.  I think it might be better if I went back to Galilee for the present time.”  No, the fear of IAUE prevented him from sinning, from disobeying the will of his Father.

This brings us back to the fear of man.  I believe the fear of man is at the root of the fear of speaking in public…the fear of sharing one’s testimony with others.  What does the Scripture say about this?

2 Timothy 1:7 For IAUE hath not given us the spirit of fear (timidity); but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Master…

Proverb 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in IAUE shall be safe.

We are so ready for the Holy Spirit to bring us wisdom and understanding and counsel.  We so desire the might and power of the Spirit to be manifested in our lives.  We want the gifts of the Holy Spirit to flow through our lives; but we do NOT want the fear of IAUE; because the fear of IAUE is what keeps us from disobeying His will.  If we were truly honest with ourselves, we would have to admit that we still want to keep a bit of independence for ourselves; to retain some room to still do our own thing from time to time…or, like is the case for many, for most of the time.  We do not want to see the smoke covered mountain with lightenings and thunderings and the sound of trumpet blasts.  We would end up thinking about that every single time we contemplated disobeying the will of IAUE.  Well, guess what?  That is a part of the package when we receive the Holy Spirit.  He is the Spirit of the fear of IAUE.  That fear is revealed to us as we increase in the knowledge of IAUE.

We are designed and purposed to do the will of IAUE.  What better way of assisting us toward success in that mission than to pursue the ministry of the Holy Spirit to us as the Spirit of the fear of IAUE?  He will empower us to overcome every unreasonable fear in our life and to keep our feet securely on the paths of righteousness.

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Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance of the will of IAUE.

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THE HOLY SPIRIT – XIV (The Anointing of the Holy Spirit - 2)

WBS.194

FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP

THE HOLY SPIRIT – XIV

The Anointing of the Holy Spirit - 2

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.

20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Elisha recognized that in order to walk in the spirit of Elijah; he had to walk like Elijah.  His life was no longer his own.  To demonstrate he understood that, he tore his outer garment in two.  Only then could he take up the mantle of Elijah. When he did, he immediately began doing the works of Elijah.

Last week we discussed the story of Elijah and Elisha; how Elisha wanted a “double portion” of the spirit that was upon Elijah.  He wanted the inheritance that was due the firstborn son. This is a critical point to understand.  Elisha was not seeking two times the amount of the spirit that was upon Elijah.

Too often, today, we hear preachers promising their audiences a greater anointing, or a double anointing, or more of the Holy Spirit than they have had before.  This mistaken notion comes from two things:  1) Showboating.  The preacher is looking for a bigger offering; so he promises something to his audience that has no foundation in reality; but it stirs their emotions; and 2) A misunderstanding of the Scripture that refers to Messiah receiving the Holy Spirit “without measure” (John 3:34). Thus, they believe that we receive varying measures of the Holy Spirit.

After his baptism, Yahushua was led into the wilderness for 40 days.  When Messiah emerged from the wilderness, he began healing the sick and casting out demons and preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of Elohim.  His fame spread across the region well before he made it to his home town of Nazareth (which is the setting for our opening verses, today).  As was his custom, he entered the synagogue and opened the scroll of Isaiah (to the place we refer to as Chapter 61), and he read the following:

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.

20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

This was a prophecy about the coming Messiah; so to declare it was fulfilled in their ears was Yahushua declaring to his home town that he was the Messiah.  They resented the implication that this man whom they knew as a child that grew up in their midst was the Messiah that the Torah and the Prophets prophesied would come.  After all “prophets don’t grow up from little boys, do they?” (A favorite lyric of mine from a Keith Green song)

Let’s examine this prophecy. We have read it so many times, and have heard it preached so many times; and yet we have never understood what it says. Yahushua said the Spirit of IAUE anointed him for a specific purpose.  The Spirit of IAUE was upon him because he anointed him to preach the gospel to the poor. That was it.  That was the object of the anointing.  That was why the Spirit anointed him. By obeying the leading of the Holy Spirit to preach the gospel to the poor, the anointing of the Holy Spirit produced five results.

1. It healed the brokenhearted.
2. It preached deliverance to the captives.
3. It opened the eyes of the blind.
4. It set at liberty those who were held captive.
5. It proclaimed the acceptable year (the jubilee) of IAUE.

 We should probably note that the “poor” to whom Yahushua was to preach were the poor in spirit.  All mankind is poor in spirit.  Many do not recognize it.  Those who believe they are rich in spirit cannot hear the gospel.  They are too important in their own eyes to receive it.

While ministering with his disciples, the Master sent them out to other cities “to preach.”  In the course of preaching the gospel of the kingdom, they healed the sick and cast out demons.  They set the prisoners free.

Matthew 10:7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

Luke 9:1 Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases.

2 And he sent them to preach the kingdom of Elohim, and to heal the sick.

Even after the resurrection, in one of his final messages to his disciples, Yahushua commanded them to preach the gospel; and He promised them that the gospel would still produce the same results even after he was physically no longer with them.

Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

“He that believes and is baptized” are the “poor” who do not resist the gospel. “He that believes not” are those the Master commanded his disciples to leave shaking the dust off their feet when they left.  Do you see what the Master said “shall follow” those who “preach the gospel?”

Moments before he ascended before them, the Master told his disciples that they would receive power after the Holy Spirit had come upon them; and that power is what would make them “witnesses” (Acts 1:8). The disciples would receive the anointing of the Spirit of IAUE (“The Spirit of IAUE is upon me because he has anointed me…”) and the purpose of the anointing is to make them a witness. This word “witness” in the Greek is “martuse,” which mean “a witness who will stand by his testimony even unto death.”  It is the word from which the word “martyr” is derived.

Christians the world over are seeking a “double portion” of the Holy Spirit and they do not know they already have the anointing of the Firstborn Son of IAUE abiding inside of them. They want the power of the Holy Spirit; but they want it to just “happen” to them.  They do not want to DO the Word of Elohim.  They do not want to remove themselves from the love of the world.  They do not want to separate their lives from the flesh.  They want the world AND the power of the Spirit.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Messiah: for it is the power of IAUE unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

17 For therein is the righteousness of IAUE revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

18 For the wrath of IAUE is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

19 Because that which may be known of IAUE is manifest in them; for IAUE hath shewed it unto them.

The power of the Holy Spirit is the anointing of IAUE upon our lives to be witnesses…to PREACH.  Eliminate from your thinking that to preach means to be a preacher in the contemporary understanding of that word.  (Technically, there is no Scripturally-based office in the church as that of the preacher.  It is a corruption of the church that has not been arrested for centuries.  It is the manifestation of the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes which IAUE hates.) To preach (karusso) means “to herald, or to proclaim a message.”  That means to be a witness. 

 This image depicts the choice for every believer.  The circuit breaker is YOUR WILL; and it connects your life with either the Spirit or the Flesh.  To choose the flesh is to choose the way that seems right to a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death (Prov 14:12, 16:25).  If you want to know how to access the power of the Holy Spirit; if you want the life of IAUE coursing through your life outward to others to set the captives free, to heal the sick and cast out demons and raise the dead, you just do what the anointing of the Spirit was given to you to do…declare the gospel.  Tell your story.  Witness.  The five results of acting upon that anointing will follow the believer.

Mark 16:19 So then after the Master had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of IAUE.

20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Master working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

From my many years of experience, I know that most Christians who read this will be inclined to just sigh and relegate the power of the Spirit to others, because the idea of witnessing terrifies them. The problem is the traditional concept of what it means to “witness;” and that is, “ to lead others to Messiah.”  It is synonymous with “soul winning.”  Traditional Christianity teaches us to “seal the deal,” to get the listener to “make a decision for Messiah.” Nowhere in the book of Acts does a believer “seal the deal.”  No one ever “invites” a person to accept Messiah.  Such a notion is alien to the Scriptures. The church has forgotten that it is the GOSPEL that is the power of IAUE unto salvation.  A witness is not a prosecutor, jury nor judge.  A witness is someone who tells what they know.  The gospel will do the rest of the work.  The gospel will release the Holy Spirit to function as prosecutor, jury and judge to the hearer; and He will very likely do amazing things through you to enhance your testimony.

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Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance of the will of IAUE.

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