The Spirit and Message of My Life — Paul Hershberger

Hello, this is brother Denny. Welcome to charity ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold.

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These messages are offered to all without charge by the free will offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry. God bless you. Well, it's been a good week.

You've been a group of good students. God bless you. I was Really blessed. And how with open hearts you received yesterday's message that I shared. It's one of those truths that young people can easily recoil at.

And you just opened your hearts and received it. God bless you for that. I want to thank you for Your prayers this week for me. I Needed them and I still need them today. Yeah God bless you for your open hearts seeking his face your Commitment to the Lord and enthusiasm the following.

It inspires people like me. And it blessed my heart this week to see that so God bless you for all that. Mmm, I Trust as you go home, you'll find the grace to apply To your hearts all the things that you heard this week.

I Don't know what they were because I wasn't here most of the week. But I trust that you can take them home and apply them This morning. I like to answer a question That was brought to me yesterday. The question was how do you go home and Give your heart to your father.

Especially if you've not had a good relationship with him and I would like to just say I Don't know that it makes any difference whether you had a good relationship or not as to how you should do it. It will be a little bit harder to do if you haven't had a good relationship, but I believe we should do the same thing.

Even if we didn't have a good relationship. There was a point that I made very lightly yesterday on humility and I'd like to make it a little bit More plainly to answer this question in James chapter 4 verse 10, it says Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord.

It tells us to humble ourselves. And this becomes a very important ingredient When it comes to giving our hearts to our father. There's other areas as well in preferring one another and esteeming others and.

And I would have wished I had a little bit more time to go into that yesterday, and I'm gonna have to leave that today as well but we Make a move we make a decision we make a choice. I'm going to humble myself it's not going to flutter out of heaven like some rosy feeling and Just sort of spontaneously flow out of my life.

I need to make a choice. I need to make a decision and then I need to go carry that decision out and I'm going to give you a suggestion of How you might carry that out and it might vary in each one of your lives.

Monday comes or whenever you're going to go home and you go home and you arrive at home. And I like you to if you're one of those that is not living with your parents. And you're in someone else's home or whatever your circumstances your spiritual authority is what I'm really wanting you to be after here.

You go home. How is Bible school? Oh? Bible school is a blessing. God spoke to me there and the next thing I would suggest you do is dad. I Need to talk to you about some things if they don't ask you.

Tell them Bible school is a blessing to me, and I have some things I need to talk about. So you sit down and don't push it off a long time do it right away. Sit down with your father and with your mother if you failed in the past.

I'd encourage you to open it up and just spill it all out and ask their forgiveness. Clear your heart and then You look back on the decision that you made that I'm going to submit. And I'm going to give my heart to my father.

And I'm turning my heart. You take that decision, and you speak that decision verbally out of your mouth with your tongue. And I'll guarantee your hearts going to be pumping. It's not going to be just a few light words that don't mean anything.

Because dad is sitting there, and he's listening. And it's fine for you to just cry just open your heart. And say dad I'm turning my heart to you. I'm giving you my heart. Ask your father. To guide you Dad I'm submitting to you.

I'm giving you my heart. Would you guide me guide me? Please let me know where I fail. Let me know dad where I fail. I'm choosing to submit under your authority. And I'd like to say one more thing. I could say if I Think I'm going to say when Your dad fails to do that.

Please don't hold it against him. You might have a dad that is not at all prepared to hear such a thing. Have some mercy on him. Don't hold it over his head. Don't hold it over his head. Be forgiving and patient with your father.

Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord. Humble yourself in the sight of your father all right. Again today, I would really desire That you hear my heart. I Hope I can convey it. I pray I can from God's heart.

The Spirit and Message Carried by a Christian Life

Title of the message this morning is the spirit and message of my life. The spirit and message of my life. All of us carry a spirit about us. All of our lives are giving a message. And I would like to draw our attention To what spirit are we of?

You know Jesus told his disciples at one point. You don't know what spirit you're of. There are times that we don't realize what spirit we're of. What is the message that is coming out of my life? It's good for us to observe it.

Maybe ask our authorities. What is the message that is coming out of my life. And the spirit of Our life has a lot to do with the message of our life. The spirit of our life has a lot to do with the message of our life therefore it becomes very important.

What spirit we are of? I'd like to just bow our heads and pray. Oh Lord Jesus. We plead with you this morning that you would come by the Holy Spirit and touch our hearts. Fill us Lord with your spirit Lord Jesus.

Would you stand up let the Holy Spirit descend? Upon Us today. Upon me today Lord. Open our eyes. Let us see some new things some deeper things. Give us grace to be real about our lives. Lord. Want to be genuine.

The message coming from our lives. We want it to be your message and Therefore we Lord we plead That you'd fill us with your spirit and God we pray. Show us. We're of a rock. Where we're of a wrong spirit.

Show us Lord. Where we don't portray a right spirit. Where the message of our life is confusing. It isn't right. We plead with you Lord Jesus That you would come have preeminence here and rule over our lives.

And this meeting Lord Jesus we beg you For grace to walk worthy of you Lord. That the world looks on the church and many point and Talk about hypocrites. But Oh God Give us the grace To live lives that look like you Lord Jesus.

By the spirit that comes out of our lives. Oh Lord Jesus Give us grace. Jesus name of Ray. Matthew chapter 10. Like to read verse 16. There's several Illustrations here that we can take out of this one verse.

Matthew chapter 10 verse 16. The spirit and message of my life. Behold I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Behold I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Jesus is speaking to his disciples and he's telling them disciples.

I'm sending you forth Into the world to preach the gospel to be my witness to be my testimony. And I send you forth as sheep. But as sheep you're walking in the midst of wolves. I don't know What your thoughts are about those two but sheep and wolves are very opposite.

Are they not. A sheep is A defenseless Surrendered nonviolent creature. Fact. Jesus was called the Lamb of God. Was he not? The Lamb of God. Defenseless Surrendered nonviolent creature. A wolf is exactly the opposite.

He'll attack something. He'll devour it and kill it. It's a dangerous species. He's defensive. If you come against the wolf, he'll stand right up against you and charge you and defend himself if he needs to a lamb just surrenders.

I don't know if you've ever seen a sheep getting sheared. If you haven't and have the opportunity I'd encourage you to take it a Sheep gets caught and set on its hunches and there it sits and it gets sheared the whole way through.

And they just get turned from one side to the other and rolled over and till you're done and then they get up and they sort of leave. Can you imagine? Shearing a wolf. Be a pretty Sorry sight. Really they're very obvious it aren't we.

There's a great difference in the spirit of those two. Is there not. There's a big difference in the message of those two. When you think about a sheep and a lamb you immediately think about a spirit and a message.

From that sheep and from that lamb when you see a wolf you also think about the spirit and message of that wolf and They're very different. What spirit are we of? What is the spirit and the message of my life?

And the burden on my heart is that we could set a standard in our youth to have a spirit and message of a lamb. Defenseless surrendered harmless Nonviolent. I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves.

Wisdom, Harmlessness, and the Serpent's Deception

Be therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Now a serpent is very good at seeing danger coming and They're good at slipping away without getting hurt. He says be wise like that. But be harmless as a dove.

Be harmless as a dove. What is the spirit of a dove. Is it not very similar to that of a lamb? What spirit are we of? Now I'd like to Go a little bit further on the serpent as well. Here he tells us to be wise as a serpent and Harmless as a dove.

There is another picture in the scriptures about a serpent. If you want to you can turn to Genesis chapter 3. I'm sure you're very familiar with this scripture. Says now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.

And he the serpent said unto the woman ye hath God said Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden. And the woman said unto the serpent We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden God has said you shall not eat of it.

Neither shall you touch it lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman ye shall not surely die for God knows that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as God's and no good and evil.

And She took and she ate and she gave to her husband and he ate and the whole scenario followed. That was the serpent he was more subtle Than any other creature that God had made. He questioned did God say that.

Have you ever heard that in our day? Did God say that? God knows. If you would eat thereof. Then you'll you'll know a little bit more than you do now. You won't be so innocent ignorant anymore, and he's just trying to keep you ignorant.

You won't surely die and In one sense he was right. When they ate of that fruit they didn't just fall over dead like Ananias and Sapphira did they? But they died spiritually and the day came that they did die physically.

So There was a partial truth there wasn't there but the serpent took it and twisted it and we'd like to look at that today. Taking something and twisting it. Questioning God. What is the spirit and message of my life?

The serpent is deceptive. Did he say the truth? No, he didn't say the truth. But he took the truth and twisted it and Therefore he can get us to think it's truth when it's really not true but rather heresy.

Did the reward that the serpent offered turn out to be a blessing? If you eat of this fruit, you're gonna get to be like God. You're gonna get to be like God. You're gonna know what good and evil is. Doesn't that sound wonderful.

He has it all painted up looking real good, but that reward turned out to be a curse. That reward turned out to be a curse. One thing you notice about serpents is they do very well at hiding. They do very well at blending in.

They like to sit in a corner somewhere where people don't notice them. They like to blend into their surrounding. And just sort of be there. In fact people can walk right past them and not know that they're there.

I don't know if you've had that happen or not. I have and You're walking and all said oh, whoa. What's that? And there's a serpent. I wonder how many times In our spiritual lives we walk past a serpent that is lurking there.

Quietly taking the scripture and taking the truth and twisting it. Yea has God said. Is it really that bad? Show me that in the Bible. Do you ever hear statements like that? Whatever Happened to the heart that wants to be pure that wants to be holy that wants to be as godly as I can possibly be.

For my lord that gave his life on the cross for me. I Was his to start with and then I rebelled against him and he has purchased me back. And now I want to just hold him at arm's length and well, I don't want to be any more godly than I have to.

It's a serpent lurking under the bushes twisting the truth trying to say things and that serpent Lurking there given the right opportunity will think it's fangs into us and inject spiritual poison and cause us to go a wrong way and to die and His mission is accomplished and straightway.

The Dove as a Picture of the Holy Spirit

This is a mark of faith. Mark chapter 1 verse 10 and straightway coming up out of the water. He Jesus saw the heavens open and the spirit like a dove Descending upon him and there came a voice from heaven saying thou art my beloved son in whom I am well pleased the spirit descending like a dove upon Jesus.

And Today I would like to take a look at what spirit are we of. Am I listening to the lies and the Deceptions of the serpent that is tugged away where he's hard to see where most of us don't notice him and yet He's there twisting the scriptures or am I living under an open heaven with the spirit of God?

Descending upon our lives in the form of a dove and God's blessing on our lives. This is my beloved child in whom I am well pleased. What spirit am I of. What is the spirit and the message of my life and young people?

Every last one of us here today have a message coming out of our lives. Which one is it? Which one is it? Is it the blessing of God? Descending from heaven like a dove upon our hearts in the form of the Holy Spirit or is that a lying twisting serpent?

That is trying to come for our hearts that you're okay. And it doesn't matter and they have no business telling you these kind of things. You don't have to be a holy roller. I don't know that you need to roll, but God says you need to be holy.

Without holiness no man shall see the Lord. The Bible says What spirit are we of? What spirit are we of. You know a dove is harmless. It's gentle. It's peaceful. It's calm. It's quiet. It's at rest. You know I put this dove up here to start with on purpose.

It's out in the open and it has nothing to hide. But most of you sitting here had no idea I had a serpent up here did you and some of you in the back still haven't seen it. I wonder how many in the front row saw the serpent when you sat down.

They're shaking their heads in the front row up here. They didn't notice it. One did he's right here. Tucked away underneath. It does not like being put up here for everybody to see. He does not like being there in fact.

He'll throw fits when you get him out in the light and expose him. He'll throw fits and my dear young person if you're wanting to throw fits in your heart today as we consider this matter. Consider who you're listening to I?

Beg you consider who you're listening to. What spirit am I of. What is the spirit and the message of my life the dove? The Holy Spirit of God Doesn't need to hide. It doesn't need to hide. It's right out in the open it lives in transparency.

This closing over. Wanting to be tucked away and not opening my heart. It's of the spirit of the serpent. It's not of the Holy Spirit. In fact I went through a struggle yesterday. Even carrying that thing out of Walmart.

I Don't not have an attachment to snakes. I'll be honest with you. When I I believe when the when God said there's gonna be enmity between the woman's seed and the serpent. That's what he meant, and I feel that in my spirit.

So this is really not a delightful experience to me to have this thing up here this morning, but Young person the burden of my heart is that we would get the message what spirit am I of? What spirit am I of?

Rejecting Love for the World

Now first of all let's look at love not the world. Love not the world. I'm going to go to a familiar verse again first. John chapter 2 verse 15 and 17 simply says love not the world neither The things that are in the world.

Love not the world. God is clearly telling us don't love the world neither the things that are in the world. If any man loved the world the love of a father is not in him. And John he makes it so clear.

We don't have to wonder where it's at. He says if we have a love for the world then the love for the father in heaven is not in us. We don't even need to discuss it. He just makes it matter of fact. That's the way it is.

For all that is in the world the lust of the flesh. The lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the father. But of the world and all that lust is going to pass away. But he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.

He that doeth the will of God abideth forever. Love not the world neither the things that are in the world. Now I'd like to read James chapter 4 verse 4 Starts out saying ye adulterers and adulterous this.

Know ye not that the friendship of the world is Enmity with God. Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. I Wonder how many of us in here would like to be the enemy of God.

I don't think There's anybody in here I trust there's not that would want to be the enemy of God. But he says here if we're friends with the world We can kid ourselves all we want that. I don't want to be the enemy of God.

We are the enemy of God if we love the world. If we're friends with the world. We just automatically become the enemy of God and thus it becomes very important that we stop and look. What spirit am I of?

He says love not the world. Neither the things that are in the world. Don't let things of this world Even start competing. For the spot of Jesus Christ in our hearts don't even let them start competing.

Much less let one of them get ahead of our love for Jesus Christ. And by the way, and I don't have this in my notes this morning the Bible says if we love God we will keep his commandments and He says that over and over could have a whole message just on that.

Do we love Jesus? Do we love Jesus is the spirit and message of my life portraying that I love Jesus. And young person if you could set this standard in your youth and follow it the rest of your life and Not listen to those twisted lies from the serpent you will come out, right?

You will come out, right. Now I'd like to just bring up a few things. They come up in young people a lot of enthusiasm and excitement about life. And it's been interesting to me. How young men can with great in enthusiasm discuss all kinds of cars?

They know all the models got it all down know exactly which year which one was. What motor is in it? What extra boosters you can put on them. Which one has which defects and which one is the one that's the best one of the Year.

And on and on you can go trucks the same way. Lots of fun talking about four-wheelers. You know, here we go. Lots of power. Which one will go how fast and and how high you can jump with it and and what I did with it.

And all this excitement my friend. I'd like you to ask the question What is the spirit and the message of such enthusiasm? My friend, where will it take us? Where will it take us? Computers are the same way.

There are some people that can hardly talk anything about but computers. While we're worshiping the dumb thing or what? And I have a computer but where is my love. Where is my affection. Computer games.

There I sit. Playing. Avoid the sheriff or something like that on a computer game. Those are real games. Trying to evade the sheriff. What spirit is it of. Oh, it's just the game. Wonderful suggestion from the serpent, isn't it?

Wonderful suggestion from the serpent and We swallow it. What spirit is it off. Is it something that heaven could open up over. The Holy Spirit kept come down upon our lives and God could say. My beloved child in whom I am well pleased.

I Think we know the answer. Be embarrassing to play one of those when Jesus split the in eastern sky. What spirit am I off? Videos go right with it. Oh, but it's a good one. It's educational. My friend could that be a suggestion from the serpent.

Think about it might be good. But is it the best. Is it the best? What spirit is it off? Is it the kind of thing that the Spirit of God could descend out of heaven upon our lives and God could say this is my beloved child in whom I am well pleased.

Electronics. Electronics period all kinds of gadgets. I don't have you have one of them organizers or not. I have one. But what do we have it for? Things like that to compare cameras looking at comparing different ones.

Cell phone craze. What all games can you play on the cell phone? And and how can you make it ring a different way and all this thing of running the whole thing? I have mine to use. Where is a heart passion?

Where is my love? You know? Would have loved Jesus with all of a heart. Now this other affection I put beside him and he says if that's the way it is you're not don't you're not an altruist. Because you're going and sporting off with something else rather than him.

Suggestion from the serpent. Twisted a little bit. The air of a macho. You know I like to be Pretty well set here and by the way, I want the girls to notice me. What spirit is it of. Is it of the kind of spirit that the Spirit of God could descend out of heaven upon and God?

Could say this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. It's not it's not. It's one of them twists from the serpent. It's one of them twists from the serpent. Nothing wrong with talking with girls.

I don't think so either. What am I after? How am I carrying myself? What am I doing to their hearts? Serious questions if I arouse desires in her. That I can't lawfully fulfill. I'm defrauding her. I'm defrauding her and.

Then think about the Spirit of God descending from heaven upon your life and that God saying This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. It just won't happen will it it won't happen. What spirit am I of the young ladies same thing a?

Flirting spirit trying to get the attention of the young men. Oh, it feels good. It flutters my heart. What spirit is it up? What spirit is it up? Can God look down from heaven open heaven over your life and let the Holy Spirit descend upon your life?

In the form of a dove and say this is my beloved daughter in whom I am well pleased. When I'm littering in my heart, what's a boy? Turning the fantasies in my mind picturing things. I'd like to do reading a romance now.

Oh Tingles my heart well while you're reading that romance novel. Do you think God? Could look down from heaven and let his spirit descend upon your life and say this is my beloved daughter in whom I am.

Well-pleased or would it be embarrassing if Jesus split the eastern sky while I'm reading that novel. Would I have some explaining to do? Often we just sort of go by what the flesh is telling us and we're listening to suggestions from the serpent.

They're not going to come out right. They're not going to come out right. The spirit of a harlot. The spirit of a harlot. I don't think there's any of you young ladies here today that would profess that you Want to be a harlot?

I don't think there's any of you and yet the spirit of a harlot communicates and suggests Immorality. Right now let's stop and think. The way I conduct myself and the clothes I wear. What are they asking?

What are they suggesting? Does it matter and I'd like to just talk plain to you young ladies when you dress to show off your body. It's the spirit of a harlot whether we want to admit it or not. If the way we dress and the clothes we wear.

Suggest that someone a young man or any man should lust after us. That is the spirit of a harlot. Somebody's telling us. Well, it doesn't matter. They ought to go deal with their lust problem. That's the serpent.

That's the serpent and the fashions of the world today are totally geared into this alley. You go out through Ephrata whenever I leave here at lunchtime to go prepare for the next day. I've made a few trips to Walmart and it just feels like ah I've come out of a holy place and I went into defilement.

It's everywhere and The things you see are horrendous. Have we listened to the suggestions of the serpent. Are my clothes form-fitting and to be real plain? Do my tops are they tight? Sometimes we don't talk plain enough.

We don't get it. Can I wear a tight top young lady and Can you wear clothes that have these wonderful light lines on them? Suggesting all kinds of immorality. Can you have those things or have slits in your skirts and let God look down from heaven and let his spirit?

Float down upon your life and God could say this is my beloved daughter in whom I'm well pleased and she's Seducing a man over here to lust. It's a suggestion from the serpent and this serpent wants the opportunity.

To someday sink his fangs into you and inject deadly poison to destroy your soul. I need to keep moving. Sports sports. The young people live together. Let's play volleyball. Maybe let's play softball or go play basketball and it's play play play play play.

America is play crazy not against Playing a few games every once in a while, but we are playing crazy. It has come into the church. Rapidly, in fact, I'm concerned it comes into our circle sitting right here.

We think we got a play play play. You know, really? If that's where our heart and affection is. Can heaven open over lives and the sweet blessing of God come down upon us? Let's be honest when we're done playing a game and we just want.

Do we have the same edification in our hearts as you do at the end of a day of Bible school? Which spirit is it of? Which spirit is it of? Hunting Guns and Etc on and on and on utility. What takes my time?

Where am I spending my time? And what makes the emotions of my heart of the most exciting excited? Where are my affections would be another way to say it? What gets me going the most? That's where our heart is and which spirit is it of if I have a choice.

What will I choose to do? Number two foolishness. First Corinthians 13 11 when I was a child. I speak as a child. I understood as a child. I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

And I'd like to suggest if you were old enough to come to Bible school then you're old enough to put away childish things and become a mature person in Jesus Christ and It's time to put away childish things.

Proverbs 19 3 says the foolishness of man perverted his way. The foolishness of man Perverted his way and is that not what we said the serpent does he takes the truth? And he just sort of twists it and perverts it and turns it into heresy.

So what spirit is foolishness of? Foolishness. Lightheartedness. Immaturity. What spirit is it of? What am I about? Am I a sober minded young boy or girl young man or lady? Or do I always like to be cutting jokes and laughing and having a good time with the friends, you know, and you know We stand in a circle and be silly when we're done.

It's like we're just drained right. It's not at all the Spirit of God coming out of heaven upon our lives. This is my beloved child in whom I'm well pleased. Is it it's not at all that way. There were ten virgins five were wise.

Five were foolish. Five were foolish. What happened to the foolish? What happened to the five foolish virgins? They lost out. They didn't make it to heaven. They went to eternal damnation. All of a sudden foolishness becomes a serious issue.

Mark chapter 7 verse 21 through 23 talks about a list of things that come from within out of the heart of man and Their evil thoughts. The last one there is foolishness. Foolishness and All these evil things it calls it an evil thing come from within and defile the man.

Foolishness Defiles us. No wonder we feel empty when it's done. Well, but Surely you got to have a little bit of fun in life. Well, I'd like to recommend to you the joy of the Holy Ghost. Whatever fun you want to have needs to be in such a realm that it does not grieve the Spirit of God and take away.

The joy of the Holy Ghost. Which spirit is it of? Another one in Proverbs 24 verse 9 says the thought of foolishness is see. The thought of it the formulating of it Is seen. The Bible tells us also if even Proverbs that?

Foolishness is bound in the heart of the child, but the rod of correction will drive it far from him. Instructing parents get rid of this thing in the heart of your children. Foolishness, well, it's time to grow up and put away childish things and foolishness is at the center of it.

Suggestions that foolishness is okay. Sounds like one of those suggestions from the serpent. We need to get him out in the light where we can see what his suggestions are. Number three the fear of man.

The fear of man. You might be sitting here this morning and God is speaking to your heart you see needs in your life, and you'd like to change. But what what what are my friends going to say? What what will they think about me or at home that think I've gone off the deep end.

That's the snare. Snare, it's the fear of man. The fear of man bringeth a snare, and I'd like to portray a snare with this this morning. It does the same thing. There's things in life That we step into without seeing a snare.

Usually is tucked away for animals where they don't see it. And it's left in a noose like that, and it's hung off of the ground so that when they come through it'll catch right underneath Their neck and they pull into it with their chest and as they pull it starts turning pulling and The problem is it won't loosen up so as they struggle it gets tighter and tighter and tighter.

It's not supposed to tear either. I wanted to snip this one off, and I guess I put it too much strength to it. But it gets tighter and tighter around their body and it literally Chokes the life out of them.

And my friend if you're here today and You're letting the fear of man make your decisions. I'm here to plead with you because the very life that Jesus wants to bless you with is going to be choked out.

It's going to be choked out. Galatians chapter 1 verse 10 says. For do I now persuade men or God? Are we going to persuade my friends. Are we persuading God? Who are we talking to who are we concerned about or do I seek to please men?