YOUR PERCEPTION ABOUT CHRIST

Matt 16:13-20

Our perception is how we see or perceive things; how things appear to us; our conscious understanding of things. Our perspective is our opinion, view, or outlook about something and in our text above, we see Jesus inquiring about these two very important things; Perception and Perspective. Interestingly, He asked His disciples first "who do men say that I am?", before He asked them "who do you say I am?".  This is very important because perspective is enhanced by perception. Jesus was telling His disciples that men's perspective of Him is enhanced by their (His disciples') perception of Him; that the way men see and whatever they say about Him (their opinions and views) is based on what His disciples perceive and say about Him. Jesus had ministered to the twelve and through them He had ministered to the people. The people had heard about Him through the twelve, and so their opinions about Him would be based on what the twelve had taught and portrayed about Him. So He asked them first "who do men say that I am?"

 

The answers His disciples gave are quite interesting; some said John the Baptist, some said Elias, others said Jeremiah, and still others said "one of the prophets". These answers are considered by some to be correct and by others to be incorrect. But one thing is sure, they were based on the people's perception of Jesus Christ. Scriptures tells us that Jesus came in the spirit of John the Baptist, and so when His ministry started, the people saw John in Him (Mar 6:14), meaning that He reflected some of the characteristics of John the Baptist. Of course John's ministry is similar to that of Elias and so it's no surprise they also saw Elias in Him (Jesus Christ); and then Jeremiah (one of the new covenant prophets)and one of the prophets. In essence, their perception of Him is kind of correct and ok, but when it comes to perception and what we perceive to be true, we must be very careful because sometimes, what appears to be real, is really not real. The spiritual is more real than the physical and what is seen is not as real as what is not. So we cannot base our decisions sometimes on just perception.

 

So Jesus turned His attention to His disciples and asked them "who do you say I am?". When Peter gave Him an answer that is not based on flesh but on revelation (Matt 16:17), Jesus said to him "blessed are thou". This means that there is a blessing in looking beyond the physical/ordinary. Jesus said "blessed" to an answer that is not based on "flesh and blood". Many a times, what gets us into trouble is "flesh and blood". What we know about God is "flesh and blood" (what we've read from books, heard from our pastors, etc.) and not what has been revealed to us by the Spirit; but God is only interested in what He has to say. The church of today is so filled with info, lacking insight; today's church has a lot of head knowledge but lack revelation, and just like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus has lots of info but are strangers to Christ and were trying to explain Christ to Christ; their eyes were opened when revelation came from Christ (Luke 24:13-32). The only way to receive revelation that will enhance our perspective of God is by communicating with Him.

 

Matt 16:18-19

Jesus said to Peter "you are Peter and upon this rock, I shall build my church". He had been speaking to Peter all the while, so coming definite to Peter and saying "you are Peter" could only mean that He was talking to two Peter. The Greek word for Peter is Petros (small rock, stone), but Jesus said upon this rock (Petra - large rock) I shall build my church. The problem with the church is that we have always emphasised the small stone and neglected the Rock. We focus on ourselves and branches and denominations (small stones) and forsake the Rock (Christ). Small stones also refer to revelation in progress (revelation of God's word in bits); prosperity, healing, breakthroughs and the likes that the church has formed doctrines out of and has emphasised. Today we speak of healing churches, deliverance churches and the likes, all small stone churches. Christ is the Rock, and in Christ is all small stones. The church has turned Christ to a means to an end, but He is the end; and in Him we have all things. Christ is our focus, and not the things He brings.

 

It's not about the small stones, it's about Christ. We are unmovable and unshakable because we are connected to the Rock. We are constantly being refreshed because we are connected to the Rock. David always spoke of refuge as connected to the presence of God. Our refuge is in the Rock; He is big enough to house us all. The devil cannot chase the Rock; the reason he has been chasing you is because he has been seeing you. It's not about you, it's about the Rock. It is the mountain of the Lord's house that will be set above all other mountains (Isa 2:2). It is about lifting up Jesus and not ourselves. The basis of our message and our lives as Christians is lifting up Christ. It's not about us (the small stones), it's about Christ (the Rock).

How to walk in the Spirit - Part one

 

Aim: To understand what it means to walk in the Spirit and how we can walk in the Spirit

Text: Galatians 5:16–17; 25,

INTRODUCTION 

When we experienced the new birth, we passed from death to life (from condemnation of the law to justification unto life); which marked the beginning of our Christian walk/faith. Now that we have the life of Christ in us, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, our goal in life must be to manifest this life, so that all may see Christ in us (Matthew 5:14-16). This work of subduing the sinful/lustful desires of our flesh and manifesting the holy and righteous life of Christ that is in us is the work of the Holy Spirit, and this work is the process of sanctification (conforming our experience here on earth to our reality in Christ Jesus).

 

In Adam, all we were capable of was walking in the flesh, satisfying the desires of the sinful nature. But now, in Christ Jesus, we are capable of walking in the Spirit and not gratifying/fulfilling the desires of the flesh (Gal 5:16–17).

 

In our previous studies, we learnt about the Holy Spirit, His work of sanctification in our lives and how He empowers us and gives gifts for effectiveness in service when we are baptized in Him. In this study, we will be learning more about the sanctification work of the Spirit by looking at what it means to walk in the Spirit and how we can walk in the Spirit.

DISCUSSION

·         What does it mean to walk in the Spirit? (Gal 5:25)

Anyone who's born again lives in the Spirit, anyone who's not is in the flesh and those who live in  the flesh cannot please God (Rom 7:5, Rom 8:8-9). In Gal 5:25 however, the bible says to us that if we live in the Spirit, we should also walk in the Spirit; meaning that it is possible to live in the Spirit (having the Spirit of God dwell in us - Rom 8:9) and not walk in the Spirit. It becomes clear therefore that we can have the life and the Spirit of God in us, but will never manifest this life and the fruit of the Spirit until we begin to walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:18-23, Rom 8:12-14). So what does it mean to walk in the Spirit? To walk in the Spirit simply means to live according to the Spirit, minding the things of the Spirit (i.e. dwelling/remaining in the habitat/environment of the Spirit) and sowing to please the Spirit - Rom 8:5, Gal 6:7-8.

 

·         What are the advantages of walking the Spirit?

§  It helps us not to gratify the desires of the flesh - Gal 5:16

§  It helps us to manifest the fruit of the Spirit - Gal 5:22-25, John 15:4-8

§  There is no condemnation to those who walk in the Spirit - Rom 8:1

§  Walking in the Spirit produces life and peace - Rom 8:6

§  When we walk in the Spirit, we do not walk in ignorance - John 16:13

§  Walking in the Spirit produces freedom and an ever increasing life of glory - 2Cor 3:17,18

§  Mention Others

To be continued...

PREVALING BY THE PROMISE

Rom 4:13, Heb 6:13-15

The way God blessed Abraham was by the promise; when He (God) wanted to bless him, He (God) gave him a promise. There is power in God's promises and when we believe His promises something happens to us. Abraham received God's promise and that was all he needed for his life to turn around completely. They say talk is Cheap, but not when God is talking; There is power in His promise. God has given us exceeding great and precious promises; promises that will always exceed our expectation, and through promises we can partake in His divine nature (2Pet 1:4). Because of God's promises Abraham experienced divine manifestation. He was able to give birth to a son even when it was no longer physically possible. When we receive God's promises, our situation changes. Abraham had dominion over the natural order of life because of God's promise, and God has also given us Exceeding promises so we can partake (share, experience) in His divine nature.

 

Moving on to the other part of 2Pet 1:4, we see that receiving God's promises also help us to escape corruption that comes through lust. Now most times when we hear the words corruption and lust our minds go to immorality and sexual lust respectively but that's only part of what is being referred to in this verse (2Pet 1:4).  Corruption here refers to negative fruit, effect or consequence - Psa. 16:10 (here, the psalmist is prophesying about Christ passing through hell and not experiencing the effects or consequences of hell) while lust refers to feeling angry because one's desire is not being met - Psa. 106:13-14 (when the Bible talks about lust here it was refering to how the Israelites were angry and dissatisfied with the things God was giving them in the wilderness) and lust produces corruption/opens one up for corruption.

 

God is saying to us that whatever we are going through in life will only affect us negatively (corruption) if we permit it to/if we give in to lust and that if we hold on to His promises, instead of experiencing the corruption in that situation, we will partake of the divine nature. Instead of getting angry, upset and complaining, we will be praising God and declaring His promises and partake of the divine nature.

The glorious liberty of the sons of God - Rom 8:21

Nobody is as free as the children of God on the earth. Because we are children of God, we have liberty/freedom from corruption and experience glory instead of corruption. We refuse to give in to anger and bitterness and we hold on to God's promises.

The perfect Law of Liberty - James 1:25

The perfect law of liberty refers to Scriptures/God's promises; and whosoever looks into it experiences the blessing instead of corruption. We shall know the truth and the truth shall set us free. Jesus is lifted just like Moses lifted up the bronze serpent, and whosoever looks will experience liberty/freedom from the corruption in that situation (John 3:14).

The Spirit of Promise - Eph 1:13

One of the assignments of the Holy Spirit is to help us know and experience the promise (He guides us into all truth). Wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty/freedom from corruption (2Cor 3:17). Because of the Holy Spirit, we are spirits in every situations and cannot be held down. In Gal 3:13-14, we see that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law so that we can experience the promise of the Spirit through Faith; the blessing is the promise of the Spirit through faith.

In Heb 4:1-5, the Bible talks about us entering into God's rest. Christ was crucified before the foundation of the earth, and the day we got born again was not the day He died for us. It was the day we entered into His rest. In the same way, God has already fulfilled that desire of ours and all we have to do is enter into His rest and seize from our own struggle. The Spirit of God helps us to recognise the manifestation of God when it comes. God always sends His solution (His word) and by His Spirit we recognise and receive His word and enter into His rest.

God has given us great and precious promises and the Spirit of promise will help us recognise the promise, guiding us into all truth, and as we declare His promises we partake of the divine nature/we experience divine manifestation. Instead of God to lie, the situation will change; we must hold on to the promises and keep confessing until the situation turns around. There's a promises for every situation and if we can recognise it by the Spirit and hold on to it, we will experience divine manifestation.

Walking in the Spirit (The Baptism in the Holy Spirit)

Aim: To understand what the Holy Spirit baptism is and its relevance to us as believers

Text: Acts 1:8; 10:44-46; 19:1-6, Joel 2:28

INTRODUCTION 

The Holy Spirit baptism is different from the new birth experience (Acts 19:1-6). When a person gives his/her life to Christ, the Holy Spirit indwells (resides in) him/her (Rom 8:9). Salvation (the new birth experience) is a work of the Holy Spirit (John 6:63), but this work is different from the baptism of the Holy Spirit that empowers the believer for effectiveness in service (Acts 1:8).

The baptism in the Holy Spirit is a supernatural endowment with power for the purpose of witnessing effectively and with an initial evidence of speaking in tongues (Acts 10:44-46; 19:6).

DISCUSSION

Truths about the baptism in the Holy Spirit

1.      The baptism in the Holy Spirit is different from the new birth experience

·         The new birth is for unbelievers while the baptism in the Holy Spirit is for believers (Acts 8:14-17; 19:4-6)

·         In the new birth the Spirit saves and sanctifies (the Spirit within), while in the Holy Spirit baptism He empowers and gives gifts (the Spirit upon) (Jn 6:63, 2Th 2:13, Acts 1:8 1Cor 12:7)

·         In the new birth, the Holy Spirit is the baptizer, while in the Holy Spirit baptism Christ is the baptizer (1Cor 12:13, Gal 3:27, Matt 3:11, John 1:33, 34)

2.      The baptism in the Holy Spirit is a promise

·         The Father promised to pour His Spirit on us and empower us for His service. (Joel 2:28,29; Acts 2:17-18)

·         Jesus also reminded us of this promise (John 7:37-39, John 14:16-18)

3.      This promise is for Christian disciples of every era (Acts 2:38-39)

4.      The baptism of the Holy Spirit is an endowment of God’s power

·         This endowment empowers us to witness for Christ boldly (Acts 1:8; 4:31)

·         This endowment empowers us to serve Christ effectively (1 Cor. 12:4-7)

5.      An initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is Speaking in Tongues (Acts 10:44-46; 19:6)

CONCLUSION

The way to receive the Holy Spirit baptism is similar to the way we got saved as believers. After knowing and believing in the person of the Holy Spirit and His ministry in our lives, we must ask in faith and receive (Luke 11:9-13, Jn 14:17). The Lord wants us to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit, so once baptized we should keep being filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:31; Eph. 5:17-19).

 

GRACE FOR DOMINION

Gen 1:26, 28

The quality of life we live here on earth is a function of the knowledge we have, and this cannot be overemphasized. It is God's will/plan for us to dominate and rule over the earth, but until we know this and begin to act on this knowledge, we will not begin to dominate. The Grace of God is not just restricted to God's unmerited favour, but also God's mercy and His ability that is at work in us. The Grace of God is three-fold; Favour, Mercy, and Ability (Eph 2:4-5, Heb 4:16, Acts 20:32). So when we talk about Grace for Dominion, we are talking about God's divine ability given to us to dominate here on the earth.

In the beginning, we understand that Adam (man) named all the animals and had total dominance over creation; But after the fall of man, that dominion was lost and fear came in. Jesus Christ came however to restore us back to that position of dominion (Eph 1:20-21).

Dominion refers to power to rule and influence, authority, and is not restricted to any area of life. God has given us grace to dominate everything that has before now dominated us; to take our place and rule over every circumstance in our lives (Psa 8:1-6). This is our reality in Christ Jesus, and our attitude, mindset and conversations should be in line with this reality and to know that when God gives us grace it breaks barriers.

There is need for however to remain humble, knowing full well that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (Prov 3:34, James 4:6); we must also continue to grow in God's grace by growing in our knowledge of His word (2Pet 3:18, 2Pet 1:2).

Walking in the Spirit (The Person of the Holy Spirit)

Aim: To understand who the Holy Spirit is and what roles He plays in our lives

Text: Gal 5:25, Jn 14:16-17, Rom 8:16, Acts 1:8

INTRODUCTION 

To be able to walk in the Spirit, we must first of all understand who the Spirit is as this will enhance our spiritual growth and facilitate flourishing fellowship with Him. So much have been said about the Holy Spirit; Jesus told His disciples the importance of Him leaving, so that the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) can come and gave them some of the advantages of having the Holy Spirit (Jn 14:16-17; 16:5-8). He also told them not to leave Jerusalem until they are baptised with Him (the Holy Spirit) - Acts 1:4. But who really is the Holy Spirit and what are His functions in our lives as believers? These are the questions we will be answering in our today's study.

Understanding the Person of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the Almighty. He possesses the characteristics that God alone possesses;

·         He is Omnipresent - He can be everywhere - Ps 139:7-10

·         He is Omniscient - He knows all things - 1Cor 2:10

·         He is Omnipotent - He is all powerful - Luke 1:35

·         He is the Creator - Job 33:4

The Holy Spirit is not a wind; neither is He a force, nor a fire, nor a dove. Holy Spirit is a person, He has emotions (Eph 4:30), He has a will (1Cor 12:11), He has a mind (Rom 8:27), He speaks (Acts 13:2, 10:19), He teaches (Jan 14:26), He can be grieved (Eph 4:30).

Functions of the Holy Spirit in the Believer's Life

The Holy Spirit does a lot of things for the believer too numerous to write down. A few are listed below;

·         The Holy Spirit teaches the believer the way of God - Jan 14:26

·         The Holy Spirit gives the believer assurance of his salvation and awareness of his sonship - Rom 8:14-16, Gal 4:6, 1Cor 2:12

·         The Holy Spirit guides the believer in the way of Truth - Jan 16:13

·         The Holy Spirit is the source of miraculous power - Rom 15:19

·         The Holy Spirit helps the believer to pray in God's will - Rom 8:26-28

·         The Holy Spirit equips the believer for service - Acts 1:8, Acts 10:38

·         He is a Comforter - Jan 14:16

·         He releases His gifts upon believers according to the need for the time - 1Cor 12:7-11

·         Mention others

 CONCLUSION

The Holy Spirit is God and not a lesser figure in the Godhead. He has been since the beginning and was active in the creation of the world (Gen 1:1). His roles in our lives as believers cannot be overemphasized and He treasures the fellowship of God's children. To walk in the Spirit is to know the Holy Spirit and to fellowship constantly with Him

Walking in the Spirit

1Cor 1:27, Acts 1:8, Zech 4:6

As believers, we have the Spirit of Christ in us and because of that we can do all things (we can do the things that Christ would do). When we walk in the Spirit, we know the mind of God. When God calls us, He shows to the world that He doesn't do things according to the standard of the world, and so those who walk in the Spirit are always conscious of God's presence and show daily moment by moment holiness; They learn to yield to the Spirit of God and live according to God's standard. Because of Christ, every born again child of God has the Holy Spirit and is qualified to be led by the Spirit. He (Jesus Christ) told us about the coming of the Spirit, and made us understand that the Holy Spirit is for everyone who believes. All one has to do is ask for the Spirit's leading and yield to the Spirit, giving Him the leadership role in our lives.

To walk in the Spirit, is to follow the Spirit's leading; to be led by the Holy Spirit and one way the Spirit of God leads us is through God's word when the word of God dwells richly in us. When we walk in the Spirit, we allow Him to guide our steps and conform our minds to the mind of Christ. We must therefore be careful the things we load our minds with. We must entertain and focus our minds on the things of the Spirit and God's word, concentrating on Christ and not dwelling on the things of the flesh.

Why We need to walk in the Spirit

·         Jesus commanded it and promised us the Comforter - Acts 1:8, Jn 16:5-14

·         We can only worship and commune with God in the Spirit - Jn 4:24

·         Walking in the Spirit brings about liberty (freedom from fear and the activities of the devil) and consciousness of the Truth - 2Cor 3:17, Jn 8:32

·         When we walk in the Spirit we will not fulfil/gratify the desires of the flesh - Gal 5:16

·         Walking in the Spirit is a proof of Sonship - Rom 8:14

·         When we walk in the Spirit, we manifest the Fruit of the Spirit - Gal 5:16-26

 

Walking in the Spirit begins with our being part of the body of Christ and receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit. God desires us to walk with Him in close fellowship/communion with the Holy Spirit. Let us therefore make effort to yield to God's Spirit and His word in constant fellowship and obedience, and follow His leading.