Notes from Roger Aubrey
(any scriptures are NIV [unless otherwise stated] and these are haphazard, jotted down notes from class...sorry for the lack of structure...)
John 4 v24
"God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."
Romans 8 v11
"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. "
The Holy Spirit has no interest in your life at all. He comes to live his own life in you, as God in you.
Romans 8 v14
"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God."
Matthew 3 v11
“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. "
Acts 1 v8
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
(you will recieve all the ability of God when he comes on you)
Genesis 2 v4-7
"This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. "
(everything God creates, he creates by speaking)
When you become a Christian, you don't become spiritual, your spirit comes alive to God.
Zachariah 4 v6
"So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty."
Mark 1 v9-11
" At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
The Spirit tore heaven open as he descended!! Jesus never performed any miracles until the Spirit descended on him.
Could Jesus have performed miracles without the Holy Spirit?
-->YES, because he was fully God. The Spirit did not add anything to his person. NO, because he was modeling for us what a man filled with the Spirit looks like.
John 7 v37
"On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. "
The Spirit flows from within you. He works in you. He didn't say you would recieve a lake or a reservoir. It's not the lake of peace and tranquility, or a reservoir that gets used up. He's a river of flowing water.
To not be filled with the Spirit means that he doesn't have free range to move through. You can be filled with the Spirit in your sleep! You are, constantly, filled with the Spirit!
Who, exactly, are we dealing with?
1) The Holy Spirit is God.
In dealing with the Spirit, we are dealing with none other than the personal presence of God.
The Holy Spirit is the third person of God. He is just as much God as God the Father or God the Son. You are dealing with God.
For you in your experience of God, he's more likely to be the first person of the trinity that you deal with. You know Jesus through the Spirit and God through Jesus.
Genesis 1v2
"Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters."
The first person of God indentified in the whole word of God was the Spirit. (the law of first mention...)
You should get the idea of fatherhood, not from your earthly father, but from God.
God is fully comfortable within himself to not be bothered whether you pray to the
Father, Son or Holy Spirit.
Elohim: Gods. God plural. Genesis 1:1 'Elohim said, let's make man in our image.'
The Spirit is not New Testament. He is throughout all of scripture. He is God in motion. The first way he was described was as hovering; in motion.
Yahweh: the covenant, sacred name of God. Whenever someone asked his name in the old testament, this was what he answered.
Yahweh: I am the God who is. He is eternal and unchanging.
You have the same Spirit who came upon Samson and Elijah, Elisha and Moses!
Never read the bible as a book of nostalgia.
Whenever you read the bible, about what the Spirit does in all the stories and scripture, think, 'he's in me'.
The Spirit shares the names and titles of God.
We all have the same 'portion' or 'amount' of the Spirit. (every person's who's a believer) We have ALL of the Spirit, it's just how we let him use us.
The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Jesus as well as the Spirit of the Father.
Matthew 10 v19
"But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, " (WHEN they arrest us. Haha, thank you Lord!)
v20..."for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you."
Romans 8 v15
"The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” "
The Spirit is never called the 'spirit of the spirit', because he's not about himself.
The trinity is a sweet society. He always produces unity, he's a spirit of peace.
It may be something where you think, 'Oh Lord, I've always been this way,' and the Spirit shakes you and says, 'yep, and it's time to grow up.'
He has all the attributes and qualities of God. Our walk with God is determined very much by our concept of God. 'God is good' is a fundamental aspect of who God is - if God is good then nothing else makes sense.
God is omnipresent. He is this way through His Spirit.
Psalm 139 v7-10
"Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast."
The Holy Spirit is in the mosque. Just because he's there doesn't mean he gives his approval. The Holy Spirit is in you with exactly the same amount as he is in the farthest reaches of the universe.
The most miserable person in the world in the Christian who doesn't want to walk with the Lord, because there is nowhere you can go away from him.
Are there times when you are more aware of the Holy Spirit than others?
(an expectation? a mindset?)
--> you leave the meeting and then you go and you aren't paying attention anymore. It's almost a mode.
The general sense of the Holy Spirit's presence is there. We need to understand that that presence is a person.
ex. family members. You have photos or facebook or phone calls, but there's nothing like his presence.
It'll affect you in many different ways. He inhabits the praise of his people.
An attitude of thankfullness, you can attract the presence of God by the words that come out of your mouth. Praise, worship.
Silence itself can be powerful, but silence can be deadly. You should always begin by opening up your heart and verbally give thanks to God.
There's a power in the corporate. You've got to be strong on your own, but don't forsake the assembling together.
Expect something, you're there to make a contribution and take part.
You bring your attitude in. To any corporate meeting, church, home group, prayer meeting, when people come together, they all bring an attitude.
You have to learn how to wait on the Spirit.
When you're summoned, it's not an invitation. (talking about royal visits)
One of the appropriate dressings of going into the presence of God is thanksgiving. Don't go scruffy into the presence of God.
It's attitude. You're there to wait on the King of Kings. He can do with you as he pleases, with his timing and his agenda, and you go when he's done with you.
That's what the presence of God is about: we're here for him.
We're not here to analyze things. "Don't worry, it's God. I have no idea." (Roger Aubrey)
If you know it's God, then don't interfere. Leave people in the presence.
You leave experiences like that changed.
The Holy Spirit is not a subject, he's a person. And often when you focus on him, he'll focus you inward.
Everything God does, the trinity does, everything Jesus does, the trinity does, everything the Spirit does, the trinity does.
Matthew 3 v16
"As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. "
John 14 v15-23
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. "
(they didn't have the Spirit yet, so this all would have been so confusing!!)
Ephesians 3 v14
Friday, April 8, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Holy Spirit, Part Two
Notes from Roger Aubrey
(scripture references are from NIV)
Fire, mighty rushing wind, floods of water--> the very thing we pay money to insure ourselves against...
Wind: at Pentacost, the first inkling they got that something was going to happen was the sound of a strong wind. They didn't feel the wind but they heard it.
Ruach (Hebrew) - wind or breath or breathe. Air in movement or motion.
Pneuma (Greek)
Ezekiel 37
"The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”
I said, “Sovereign LORD, you alone know.”
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’”
I'm just having fun with the colour coding, but just to highlight that there's POWER in our words. Power in what we say. God created everything by speaking. Also the red highlighted stuff was about breath.
John 20 v21-22
"Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. "
John 3 v1-8 (NKJ for some reason...)
"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 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? Jesus 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 God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit."
You can't see the wind- it's invisible. You have to have faith , and you have to know the spirit by faith. If you can't see the Spirit, you're living by faith if you believe in him. It's no hard thing to believe what the devil says to you-->you're worthless, etc, but you need faith to believe when God says you can do the impossible! (through him of course)
We don't create the wind and we can't control it. Wind comes in varying degrees. It can be stronger and tornado-like sometimes, or weak and just a gentle breeze. The Spirit can move in different intensities or varying degrees, depending on the situation or what's needed. You can't see the wind but you can see the affects of the wind.
You can see when the wind of God is blowing through a person's life. If this was happening, what would you expect to see?:
----> changes (from glory to glory) (God can't resurrect your old life,your old sinful life, he won't do it.)
---->Fruit of the Spirit and signs that someone's filled with the Spirit. Joy, etc. Joy you can hold on to, but happiness slips through your fingers. It depends what your circumstances are, but your joy is your strength.
When there's a storm, the weaker structures would fall and the solid structures on solid foundations will stand.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is blowing through, you'll see someone who knows who they are in Christ. Where the Spirit blows you will find peace. And when it happens to the natural it is really beyond all understanding. The wellbeing of God in your life.
Christians are not immune to life, we face the same things as the rest of the world, but we are overcomers.
Power--->to do everything God calls us to do. The ability to do what's necessary.
What do you have the ability to do?
-->pray for the sick
-->cast out demons
-->testify that Jesus is Lord
John 14 v12
"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."
When thinking of miracles, people default to Christ's greatest miracle, which was raising the dead, and then say they can't do that.
What could Christ do through 18 (there are 18 students in my class...) people?? He changed the world through twelve.
Fire:
Acts 2 v1-4
"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."
Signs are there to point you to something, and wonders make you wonder. To make you think, wow, this is what God's capable of!
At Pentacost, they heard something first, and then they saw something.
Matthew 3 v11
“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
Hebrews 12 v28-29
"Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire."
Fire is to do with the nature of God. God got Moses' attention with a burning bush. Burning bushes were nothing new to Moses, he lived in a dry desert, but a burning bush that was not consumed, that did not burn up, THAT caught his attention... (Exodus 13 v19-21)
There was a pillar of cloud and fire leading the Israelites for forty years. Through everything that happened to them, that pillar was there. Cloud during the day and fire at night. This pillar was presence. It was a symbol that his presence was with them. The trademark of the church is God's presence. There's an attraction to fire, and it's the same with the Spirit.
God judged sin with fire. Fire's natural quality is to refine, cleanse, consume, purify. (refining fire, my heart's one desire).
Leviticus 10:1 "Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, contrary to his command. "-->this was unauthorized fire. Fire that God did not ask for or want.
Breaking bread is a time of self-judgement, not criticism.
Holy means set apart. You are holy. Our christian walk is really just us trying to attain what we already are.
Zeal--> to burn in your face, have a face that's on fire.
Isaiah 9 v7
"Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this."
'I'm so zealous for this (thing), that I would lay down my life for it.'
John 2 v12-17
"When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
What are you zealous for? People are zealous but for the wrong reasons.
Are you more passionate for things than you are for the Lord? For the house of the Lord? What do you give your time to?? What do you think about the most?? What do you talk about or tell people about the most?? What are you willing to give up things for? Where are you willing to put your money? What are you giving your life for??
The thing that should burn greatest in you is zeal for his house.
Water
John 7 v37
"On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. "
Psalm 46 v4
"There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells."
The Holy Spirit shall make glad Zion (the church).
Three rivers the bible talks about.
Genesis 2 v4-14
"This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. "
It's meant to flow OUT of you and produce fruit. Our life is designed to be a pleasure, to be good, to be a blessing. No matter what happens, have the attitude that life is good. Your life is meant to be a pleasure and a blessing to the world and to God. Your presence in this world is a benefit to this world. The Holy Spirit is given to you for good, for blessing.
The river watered the garden. The Holy Spirit has been given to water our life. To bless us and give us delight.
The river flowed out from the garden. The river of the Holy Spirit will flow out from you. Attitude, character, conversation, actions. He's given to you that you might give him away.
The river had four branches that flowed out to the world. We're meant to take this out into our world.
Pishon: to gush, to overflow, to drench or to spring up. (very active). The life of the Spirit in you is not a trinkle.
Gihon: to break out, burst forth, break forth. Cannot be controlled or contained. Life in the Spirit is not subject to human control. You cannot put limits or conditions on what the Spirit is allowed to do in your life. He has the absolute control.
Hikkekel (Tigris): to be active, rapid, quick, swift. The opposite of passive. Life in the Spirit is like white water rafting! The Holy Spirit sweeps you along in the current. Never lose that sense of adventure in the Spirit.
Euphrates: sweet, to bear fruit, to be fruitful.
Second type of river:
Ezekiel 43-47
The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.
3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits[a] and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”
Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah,[b] where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
The river flows from God, through the temple. The temple is for worship, and in the NT, Paul tells us that we are a temple for the Holy Spirit. So the Spirit flows from God through us. Our life is one of increase. Increasing measure. We were designed to swim. He's breaking the control of our lives.
This river is a river of life. The spirit that flows out of you is fresh and it produces swarms of living creatures. It goes into impossible situations and changes things.
You have the resource and power to bring life into every single situation you face. Your Holy Spirit way of life changes things.
God has no problem with you having wealth, the problem is when wealth has you!
Christians deal in hope. We are the trees that stood by the river bank. We live a supernatural life. It's not ordinary for trees to produce fruit each month. That means they are even producing out of season.
You're part of the answer and not the problem.
The last river is in Revelation 22 v1-2
"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. "
The river was pure and flowed from the throne. It flowed down the center of the city. Jesus stood astride the river. He stood on either side. He's the center, the pride, the guide of life.
Our life is meant to be a blessing, and the church is really only the church when it allows the Holy Spirit to flow through the center to point us to Jesus.
Let the Holy Spirit increase your sense of bigness.
(scripture references are from NIV)
Fire, mighty rushing wind, floods of water--> the very thing we pay money to insure ourselves against...
Wind: at Pentacost, the first inkling they got that something was going to happen was the sound of a strong wind. They didn't feel the wind but they heard it.
Ruach (Hebrew) - wind or breath or breathe. Air in movement or motion.
Pneuma (Greek)
Ezekiel 37
"The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”
I said, “Sovereign LORD, you alone know.”
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’”
I'm just having fun with the colour coding, but just to highlight that there's POWER in our words. Power in what we say. God created everything by speaking. Also the red highlighted stuff was about breath.
John 20 v21-22
"Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. "
John 3 v1-8 (NKJ for some reason...)
"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 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? Jesus 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 God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit."
You can't see the wind- it's invisible. You have to have faith , and you have to know the spirit by faith. If you can't see the Spirit, you're living by faith if you believe in him. It's no hard thing to believe what the devil says to you-->you're worthless, etc, but you need faith to believe when God says you can do the impossible! (through him of course)
We don't create the wind and we can't control it. Wind comes in varying degrees. It can be stronger and tornado-like sometimes, or weak and just a gentle breeze. The Spirit can move in different intensities or varying degrees, depending on the situation or what's needed. You can't see the wind but you can see the affects of the wind.
You can see when the wind of God is blowing through a person's life. If this was happening, what would you expect to see?:
----> changes (from glory to glory) (God can't resurrect your old life,your old sinful life, he won't do it.)
---->Fruit of the Spirit and signs that someone's filled with the Spirit. Joy, etc. Joy you can hold on to, but happiness slips through your fingers. It depends what your circumstances are, but your joy is your strength.
When there's a storm, the weaker structures would fall and the solid structures on solid foundations will stand.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is blowing through, you'll see someone who knows who they are in Christ. Where the Spirit blows you will find peace. And when it happens to the natural it is really beyond all understanding. The wellbeing of God in your life.
Christians are not immune to life, we face the same things as the rest of the world, but we are overcomers.
Power--->to do everything God calls us to do. The ability to do what's necessary.
What do you have the ability to do?
-->pray for the sick
-->cast out demons
-->testify that Jesus is Lord
John 14 v12
"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."
When thinking of miracles, people default to Christ's greatest miracle, which was raising the dead, and then say they can't do that.
What could Christ do through 18 (there are 18 students in my class...) people?? He changed the world through twelve.
Fire:
Acts 2 v1-4
"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."
Signs are there to point you to something, and wonders make you wonder. To make you think, wow, this is what God's capable of!
At Pentacost, they heard something first, and then they saw something.
Matthew 3 v11
“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
Hebrews 12 v28-29
"Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire."
Fire is to do with the nature of God. God got Moses' attention with a burning bush. Burning bushes were nothing new to Moses, he lived in a dry desert, but a burning bush that was not consumed, that did not burn up, THAT caught his attention... (Exodus 13 v19-21)
There was a pillar of cloud and fire leading the Israelites for forty years. Through everything that happened to them, that pillar was there. Cloud during the day and fire at night. This pillar was presence. It was a symbol that his presence was with them. The trademark of the church is God's presence. There's an attraction to fire, and it's the same with the Spirit.
God judged sin with fire. Fire's natural quality is to refine, cleanse, consume, purify. (refining fire, my heart's one desire).
Leviticus 10:1 "Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, contrary to his command. "-->this was unauthorized fire. Fire that God did not ask for or want.
Breaking bread is a time of self-judgement, not criticism.
Holy means set apart. You are holy. Our christian walk is really just us trying to attain what we already are.
Zeal--> to burn in your face, have a face that's on fire.
Isaiah 9 v7
"Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this."
'I'm so zealous for this (thing), that I would lay down my life for it.'
John 2 v12-17
"When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
What are you zealous for? People are zealous but for the wrong reasons.
Are you more passionate for things than you are for the Lord? For the house of the Lord? What do you give your time to?? What do you think about the most?? What do you talk about or tell people about the most?? What are you willing to give up things for? Where are you willing to put your money? What are you giving your life for??
The thing that should burn greatest in you is zeal for his house.
Water
John 7 v37
"On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. "
Psalm 46 v4
"There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells."
The Holy Spirit shall make glad Zion (the church).
Three rivers the bible talks about.
Genesis 2 v4-14
"This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. "
It's meant to flow OUT of you and produce fruit. Our life is designed to be a pleasure, to be good, to be a blessing. No matter what happens, have the attitude that life is good. Your life is meant to be a pleasure and a blessing to the world and to God. Your presence in this world is a benefit to this world. The Holy Spirit is given to you for good, for blessing.
The river watered the garden. The Holy Spirit has been given to water our life. To bless us and give us delight.
The river flowed out from the garden. The river of the Holy Spirit will flow out from you. Attitude, character, conversation, actions. He's given to you that you might give him away.
The river had four branches that flowed out to the world. We're meant to take this out into our world.
Pishon: to gush, to overflow, to drench or to spring up. (very active). The life of the Spirit in you is not a trinkle.
Gihon: to break out, burst forth, break forth. Cannot be controlled or contained. Life in the Spirit is not subject to human control. You cannot put limits or conditions on what the Spirit is allowed to do in your life. He has the absolute control.
Hikkekel (Tigris): to be active, rapid, quick, swift. The opposite of passive. Life in the Spirit is like white water rafting! The Holy Spirit sweeps you along in the current. Never lose that sense of adventure in the Spirit.
Euphrates: sweet, to bear fruit, to be fruitful.
Second type of river:
Ezekiel 43-47
The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.
3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits[a] and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”
Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah,[b] where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
The river flows from God, through the temple. The temple is for worship, and in the NT, Paul tells us that we are a temple for the Holy Spirit. So the Spirit flows from God through us. Our life is one of increase. Increasing measure. We were designed to swim. He's breaking the control of our lives.
This river is a river of life. The spirit that flows out of you is fresh and it produces swarms of living creatures. It goes into impossible situations and changes things.
You have the resource and power to bring life into every single situation you face. Your Holy Spirit way of life changes things.
God has no problem with you having wealth, the problem is when wealth has you!
Christians deal in hope. We are the trees that stood by the river bank. We live a supernatural life. It's not ordinary for trees to produce fruit each month. That means they are even producing out of season.
You're part of the answer and not the problem.
The last river is in Revelation 22 v1-2
"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. "
The river was pure and flowed from the throne. It flowed down the center of the city. Jesus stood astride the river. He stood on either side. He's the center, the pride, the guide of life.
Our life is meant to be a blessing, and the church is really only the church when it allows the Holy Spirit to flow through the center to point us to Jesus.
Let the Holy Spirit increase your sense of bigness.
Holy Spirit, Part Three.
Notes from Roger Aubrey
(I'm using the NIV version in here for the scripture references. This is just what I jotted down in class so sorry if it's really disjointed...)
How the Spirit works in our minds:
Matthew 22 v37
"Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’"
Ephesians 4 v22-24
"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."
Romans 12 v2
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
Don't let the world squeeze you into its mold.
Romans 8 v1-11
"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you."
Proverbs 23 v7 (NAS)
"For as he thinks within himself, so he is.
He says to you, "Eat and drink!"
But his heart is not with you. "
1 Corinthians 2 v16
" “Who has known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?”
But we have the mind of Christ. "
Your mind is part of being human. It's a gift from God. Because of the fall our minds are warped, our thinking's twisted.
Genesis 2 v17
"but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
-->the problem was knowledge. That we could think independantly of God and thereby separate ourselves from God. It was a battle for the mind. Satan didn't call God a liar. He said, "Did God really say...?" And Eve questioned it.
Romans 1 v18-32
"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. "
Governments take care of the physical aspects of life, but not the root of the problem, which is the heart of man.
In the west we're taught that something is true when we understand. Faith says, believe it and then understand it. It's not what we're taught, because we all think we need to understand a thing before we're willing to believe it, before it can be right.
The first thing you have to do in salvation is repent, which is changing your mind.
Your mind is not born again. It's not wiped like a computer drive. You still know who you are, how you grew up, etc. All it's learning and memories, so your mind has to come under the control of the Spirit, forever.
Baptism in the Holy Spirit is something that should be yours right from the beginning; day one.
Your mind is based on what you were. The old Chantal. God works to transform you by the renewing of your mind. Until the moment you speak in tongues (because the Christian life is very much about speaking), every word you've spoken in your life up until that point has been under the control of your mind.
You're not designed to be a silent believer! Take things by agreeing with them, verbally!
When you speak in tongues, your words are controlled by the Spirit. You speak truth and your mind becomes more like Christ.
Don't rationalize it with your brain. If someone's a Christian then they already have the Spirit in them.
As you speak in tongues more, you'll find that your mind begins to yield to the Spirit. To the control of the Spirit. Your mind wants to be fed and renewed. Your mind is still very important because it becomes the means by which the things of the Spirit are acted out.
Our minds are constantly being renewed and they NEED to be constantly renewed. If you stop, your mind won't revert back, but it also won't renew and your mind of the flesh will start to show.
An important thing about speaking in tongues is that you don't babble. It's a language you never learn, but it's a language: it has expression, context, syntax. It is you talking to your father. Anything's possible. Focus your thoughts on the Lord! He's who you're talking to, and TALK to him.
There's a corporate nature in speaking in tongues. (story of hearing angels sing)
Tongues can appear to be mechanical, but it is us trying to get ahold of something. The discipline of speaking in tongues is that sometimes you don't see the benefit right then.
There's power in speaking in tongues when you really need it.
(I'm using the NIV version in here for the scripture references. This is just what I jotted down in class so sorry if it's really disjointed...)
How the Spirit works in our minds:
Matthew 22 v37
"Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’"
Ephesians 4 v22-24
"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."
Romans 12 v2
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
Don't let the world squeeze you into its mold.
Romans 8 v1-11
"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you."
Proverbs 23 v7 (NAS)
"For as he thinks within himself, so he is.
He says to you, "Eat and drink!"
But his heart is not with you. "
1 Corinthians 2 v16
" “Who has known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?”
But we have the mind of Christ. "
Your mind is part of being human. It's a gift from God. Because of the fall our minds are warped, our thinking's twisted.
Genesis 2 v17
"but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
-->the problem was knowledge. That we could think independantly of God and thereby separate ourselves from God. It was a battle for the mind. Satan didn't call God a liar. He said, "Did God really say...?" And Eve questioned it.
Romans 1 v18-32
"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. "
Governments take care of the physical aspects of life, but not the root of the problem, which is the heart of man.
In the west we're taught that something is true when we understand. Faith says, believe it and then understand it. It's not what we're taught, because we all think we need to understand a thing before we're willing to believe it, before it can be right.
The first thing you have to do in salvation is repent, which is changing your mind.
Your mind is not born again. It's not wiped like a computer drive. You still know who you are, how you grew up, etc. All it's learning and memories, so your mind has to come under the control of the Spirit, forever.
Baptism in the Holy Spirit is something that should be yours right from the beginning; day one.
Your mind is based on what you were. The old Chantal. God works to transform you by the renewing of your mind. Until the moment you speak in tongues (because the Christian life is very much about speaking), every word you've spoken in your life up until that point has been under the control of your mind.
You're not designed to be a silent believer! Take things by agreeing with them, verbally!
When you speak in tongues, your words are controlled by the Spirit. You speak truth and your mind becomes more like Christ.
Don't rationalize it with your brain. If someone's a Christian then they already have the Spirit in them.
As you speak in tongues more, you'll find that your mind begins to yield to the Spirit. To the control of the Spirit. Your mind wants to be fed and renewed. Your mind is still very important because it becomes the means by which the things of the Spirit are acted out.
Our minds are constantly being renewed and they NEED to be constantly renewed. If you stop, your mind won't revert back, but it also won't renew and your mind of the flesh will start to show.
An important thing about speaking in tongues is that you don't babble. It's a language you never learn, but it's a language: it has expression, context, syntax. It is you talking to your father. Anything's possible. Focus your thoughts on the Lord! He's who you're talking to, and TALK to him.
There's a corporate nature in speaking in tongues. (story of hearing angels sing)
Tongues can appear to be mechanical, but it is us trying to get ahold of something. The discipline of speaking in tongues is that sometimes you don't see the benefit right then.
There's power in speaking in tongues when you really need it.
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