Hello, I’m Mack Lyon. The program’s In Search of the Lord's Way. Say friend; we’re glad you have joined our Bible study today. The Bible instructs Christians to “walk in the Spirit.” Does that mean that the Holy Spirit speaks to some of us “a fresh new message every day?” If so, He’s certainly confusing; even contradictory at times, isn’t He? Stay tuned; we’ll see about that.
Happy greetings to you, my friend! As I travel about, well, even right here in Edmond, Oklahoma where I live, I’m astounded at how many people I meet in the market place: the airports, the restaurants, the hospitals; well, everywhere I go, who tell me they are seeing these programs. I’m glad. I’m glad you, my friend, are among them. I pray we will both be blessed by the study today.
Phil Sanders has prepared an interesting; well, not only an interesting, but a very greatly needed message for us today, which he has titled, “Walking In The Spirit.” You may be one of the many people who have written us: “Why is there so much confusion among you preachers and others about things about which the Bible seems to be so clear and plain?” You know, Phil just may have the answer for you about that. So stay tuned.
If you think you may want a free printed copy, or a CD or an audio cassette tape of the message, simply mail your request for it to In Search of the Lord's Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083. If you prefer you may call us at 1-800-321-8633. Our e-mail address is searchtv@searchtv.org. Say, you might just want to visit our website, too, at www.searchtv.org. Ken Helterbrand’s going to lead us now in a hymn; then Phil Sanders will present the message from Galatians chapter 5, verses 16 through 25.
Our Bible reading today comes from Paul’s epistle to the Galatians; chapter 5, beginning at verse 16 and continuing through verse 25. “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” May the Lord bless the reading of His word? Let’s pray. O, Lord, help us to do Your will and to follow the things that You have given to us clearly in the Word of God. This is our prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen!
Hello! I’m Phil Sanders and I’m so glad that you took time to study the Word of God with Mack and with me. Welcome to the program. You know for many people the Holy Spirit is a mystery. Some people think of the Holy Spirit as an “it.” They think he is some kind of force or influence, but not a person. The Bible, however, always speaks of the Holy Spirit as a Divine Person like the Father and Jesus Christ. That Jesus, you’ll remember, taught in the Great Commission that we should baptize “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28, verse 20). When Paul gave his final greetings at the close of the book of 2 Corinthians, he said, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13, verse 14). Now surely the Bible would not put the Holy Spirit in such a place if he were not part of the Godhead.
Now as a person, the Holy Spirit performed many functions. For instance, the Holy Spirit was present at creation. Genesis chapter 1, verses 1 and 2 say, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” The Holy Spirit was directly involved also in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Romans 8 and verse 11 says, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” Now, the Holy Spirit thinks, He feels, He speaks, He teaches, and He has a will. On the day of Pentecost, the apostles spoke “as the Spirit was giving them utterance” (Acts 2 and verse 4). The Spirit was also involved in the miraculous gifts of the first century. In 1 Corinthians 12, the Bible mentions nine different miraculous, spiritual gifts. It says, “All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” That is from verse 11.
One of the most vital functions of the Holy Spirit was to be involved in the inspiration of the Bible. The Bible is God’s Word given to the apostles and prophets through the Holy Spirit. The Bible says in 2 Peter chapter 1, verses 20 and 21, “knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.” That is, no prophet ever thought up Scripture on his own; “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” The apostle Paul also believed that everything he wrote in the Bible came through the Holy Spirit. For instance in 1 Corinthians 2, verses 11 to 13, this apostle says, “For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.” Now this is a quotation from the New American Standard Bible.
Many people today think that the Holy Spirit speaks directly to them like He did to the apostles and prophets; or maybe He impresses some feeling on their hearts to motivate them to say something or act in a certain way. Through the years I have heard people say, “Well, the Holy Spirit told me to tell everyone Jesus is coming again;” I have had people come into my office and that He was going to come at such and such a time. But the Lord Jesus said about his second coming in Matthew 24, verses 35 and 36, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away. But of that day (that is the day when Jesus comes again) of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” Now, no one today knows when Jesus will come again; and what Jesus spoke in the first century is just as relevant and true today as when He spoke it in the first century.
Now, in the first century the Spirit taught directly to the apostles and prophets. The Spirit teaches us today by the written words of those apostles and prophets, and their words are found in the New Testament. Some people claim to believe the Bible but they say there is another authority in addition to the word of God; and they say this is the Spirit that is moving inside them. But, you see, one cannot accept an additional authority to the word of God without getting to the point that they will reject the Biblical authority. Some people today will reject the plain teaching of God’s Word in the Bible in order to follow their feelings.
Now, while I believe the Holy Spirit inspired the apostles and prophets, I see no reason to believe the Holy Spirit is speaking directly to people today. Now let me explain why. I often hear of some individual or some group claim the Holy Spirit has led them into some belief that goes against the Scripture. Now let’s look at what I am trying to say and let me illustrate what I mean. For instance the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 14, verse 34, “The women are to keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but they are to subject themselves, just as the Law also says.” Now this is not a suggestion from 1 Corinthians 14:34; it is what the Spirit revealed to the early church as the truth. Now in verses 37 and 38 here the Bible further says that, “If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize (Paul says) that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment.” And then he says, “But if anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.”
The Bible speaks again. First Timothy 2, verses 10 and 11 which says, “A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.” Now, in spite of these passages, one in 1 Corinthians and one in 1 Timothy, some women today excuse their public teaching and preaching to men in the church by saying, “Well, the Holy Spirit told me that this is what I should do.” Well, of course, this makes the Holy Spirit say one thing in the first century and quite another today. Did the Holy Spirit really tell these women they should be preachers? Well, the Holy Spirit is not in the business of contradicting himself. Will the Holy Spirit, who inspired the Bible, instruct people to disobey what the Bible teaches?
Neither Jesus nor the Holy Spirit would lead people to disobey at any time. In fact, neither the Lord Jesus nor the Holy Spirit would speak new teachings or even act on their own authority. Now, listen to what the Lord Jesus says about his giving of revelation, what He teaches. He says this in John 12, verses 49 and 50. He said, “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.” You see, the Lord Jesus only taught what the heavenly Father taught. Now listen to what the Lord said about the Holy Spirit in John 16, verse 13; He said “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” Now, if Jesus would not go beyond the instructions of the Father, and if the Holy Spirit would not go beyond the instructions of the Father, and if we know women are to keep silent in the churches because that is what they told us, that is the Holy Spirit revealed, how can anyone believe that the Holy Spirit is now telling women to go beyond the instructions that He gave in the first century and start preaching?
The Holy Spirit guided the apostles into all the truth in the first century; He did this in fulfillment of the promise of Jesus found in John 16 and verse 13. Now, if the Holy Spirit guided them into all the truth, why do we need any more revelations today? The Bible must be complete; it has to be whole, because God commanded that its authoritative message be preached, and to be preached to all people in all lands and in all times. You remember Jesus commanded at the very end of the gospel of Matthew, Matthew 28, verse 18 to 20; He said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” The message of the first century given by the Holy Spirit is the message for every century, every people, in every land, in all times!
Now, some people don’t like the suggestion that anyone has “all the truth.” We are saying Jesus Christ revealed all the truth through the Holy Spirit to the apostles. Now, it is arrogant for humans to think that they know everything; oh, that’s true, but it is not arrogant to say that the Son of God and the Divine Holy Spirit know all things and gave us all truth. It is not arrogant to claim that Jesus Christ fulfilled his promise of giving the apostles the Spirit of truth, who would guide them into all the truth. You see, the Bible is complete for all time because it fulfills the promise of Christ. And instead of seeking something new, some feeling, some impression; we should look to what God has already revealed to us in His Word. The Bible doesn’t lack even one spiritual or moral truth, does it?
The Bible does not deal with changing things which are now out of date, but with truths which do not change, and truths which are needed to change men. The apostle Paul, when he spoke to the Ephesian elders said in Acts 20 and verse 27, this is in the first century, “for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” He didn’t tell them to trust their feelings or some inner light. Rather what he said in verse 32 was this, “And now I commend you first of all to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” You see, the Bible, God’s Holy Word, is the source of the whole truth for us today. It can build us up and it can give us an inheritance; and we can rejoice in God’s Word!
Those who claim the Holy Spirit told them something often ignore the all-sufficiency of the Scriptures. They forget the Scriptures claim that they are inspired and complete. The Bible says in the book of 2 Timothy chapter 3, verse 16 and 17, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” Now, if Christianity had all truth and was equipped for every good work in the first century, my friend, we don’t need any new truth or need any further equipping in the 21st century. The words “all” and “every” mean “all” and “every”; not “all,” except when I feel moved.
People use phrases such as “the Spirit led me to do this…,” or “the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart to do that…,” or “the Sprit prompted me to do this or that…” and they do this to justify their own choices and directions many times. Such subjective assertions are often more a statement of what they desire rather than what the Spirit has revealed. Instead of looking at our feelings, we are now to contend for the faith, which was once for all time delivered to the saints according to Jude 3. We are not to innovate or reinvent Christianity. We are to go back to the Bible and practice what the Bible teaches.
In the days of Jeremiah, some false prophets were always claiming to speak “the word of the Lord.” Jeremiah said: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’ For who among them has stood in the council of the Lord to see and to hear his word, or who has paid attention to his word and listened?”’ That is Jeremiah 23, verses 16 to 18.
Well, God said clearly about these prophets, “I did not send the prophets, yet they ran; I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my council, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people, and they would have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their deeds” (Jeremiah 23, verses 21 and 2). Jeremiah spoke of the prophets who were convinced God had spoken to them, but the vision actually just came from their own hearts and minds. God didn’t speak to them. They weren’t listening to God. They spoke out of their own imagination. Now when someone today claims God told them to do something, especially something the Bible says not to do, my friend, they are just deceiving themselves. God didn’t tell them; you see they dreamed it up on their own. We must be very careful today not to say God said something when He did not do it. Our task is to listen to God and be obedient to his Word; and I hope you will do just that. Let’s pray together. O, Lord, help us to be obedient servants, to all the things You teach in your word and not be deceived by false ideas. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!
Thank you, thank you, thank you Phil for that powerful and inspiring message about “Walking In The Spirit.” I love the way brother Phil presents the truth of God in such a loving, caring and convincing way. Don’t you? Write and tell him so.
If you would like a free audio cassette tape, a CD, or a printed copy of this very vital message, simply mail your request for it to In Search of the Lord's Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083, or to searchtv@searchtv.org. Oh say, friend, why not just visit our website, too. You’ll not only find today’s message there; but there is also much, much more there; and it’s at www.searchtv.org. You might want simply to call to make your request for the message and if you do you may use our toll-free telephone number: 1-800-321-8633.
We’re presented here by members of some churches of Christ in the area that is served by this station. They would welcome you with gladness in any of their Bible study classes or in their worship assemblies. I hope you’ll attend one of them soon. And, tell them we invited you. Do it soon, will you? We plan to be back next week; I hope you will, too. You may have time to invite some more people to see the program, and if so please do. God bless you now. We love you.
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