Searching the Word of God (06/10/2001)

On our trip, Brother Russell taught, and James, and I was in Romans, and the

Lord reveals so many wonderful truths to us that it's hard for me to stay with the topic

I had planned to preach this morning. I'd like to share with you some of the stuff we learned this week.

Y 'all going to get your marriage together now, aren't you? Okay. All right. I thought, you know, that absence was supposed to make the heart grow fonder, but I didn't even bring my wife and he won't sit with his.

So, I suppose Russell and I were meant to be monks or something, get out and just study the Word all day.

That's almost what we did, but it was great. It really was. And I'll tell you, the young people were focused in, too.

They really were, not cooperating is not the right word, but participating in the

Bible studies. And we had one young person that either got saved or got assurance of their salvation the last night.

And I won't say who, because probably they would rather tell you themselves. But they were in tears and almost hyperventilating, wanting to be right with God.

And it was because of all the teaching that was done during the whole week. It was fantastic. I may get an opportunity to share some of it with you this afternoon.

Brother Otis and I, two weeks ago, we finished Genesis. And then Brother Myron was here.

And then I was gone all week and we didn't have a chance to discuss where we were going to go next. So, he figured I'd have something. I figured he'd have something.

So, that's going to give me an opportunity to share with you a couple of thoughts that I shared with the young people this afternoon.

And I'll do that. And I'm glad to get that opportunity, really. But he and I will just be trying to nail down where we'll go next for Sunday nights.

And we'll go back to our tag team teaching, where he'll do it one Sunday, I'll do it the next, and so forth.

So, be in prayer about that. And we'll see where we go from Genesis. This morning, we're in our study of Bibliology.

How to properly interpret the Word of God. Turn with me, if you would, to 2

Timothy 2, verse 15. And we mentioned eight proper methods of interpretation, or steps to proper interpretation.

And then we began to talk about three habits in the Christian life that are very necessary to be able to interpret

Scripture correctly. And to make sure that you're getting the true sense that God wants you to get from the

Scriptures. And those three habits are study, search, and separate. And you'll find two of those in this one verse, 2

Timothy 2, verse 15. Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Study, we see there, is the first word and then the phrase towards the end where it says rightly dividing the word of truth.

We'll just call that separating the word properly, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Last time, we talked predominantly about the idea of study. And today, I'd like to go in more depth into this idea of search.

And we will save separating or dividing for next time. But let's think about searching the

Word of God a little bit this morning. Let me have you turn to, we have to have a different verse to introduce it because it's not found in that verse.

Turn to John chapter 5 and verse 37, if you would please. And remember that study is required with diligence.

Because if we don't study, and if we don't apply the eight rules of proper Bible interpretation, and if we don't have these three habits, then what will happen when we hear the vain babbling going on by all the people who want to teach us what the

Bible says, we'll believe it if we don't know better. And so we have to have a method of Bible interpretation.

And I believe that as people grow in this area and begin to practice these methods as a local church, our doctrinal beliefs become more and more with unity.

I mean, we never all agree 100 % with each other on all the little details. And God leaves some leeway there for us because we still have unity based around the major doctrines, the major doctrinal themes of the

Bible. But I think even the details in the life of a local church body as we grow together, even the details become more and more the same as we use the same

Bible interpretation methods and learn to use them properly. But what about this idea?

We know that we need to study, but what's this idea of searching? Well, let's look at John 5, 37. And the

Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. You have neither heard his voice at any time nor seen his shape.

Now, Jesus is implying that I have. I have heard his voice and I have seen his shape.

And he's saying, so therefore, maybe you should consider listening to me because you've never seen God. That's what he's saying here.

Now, in verse 38, he says, And you have not his word abiding in you, for whom he hath sent him you believe not.

Now, isn't that a shame? These people are supposed to be authorities in the Scriptures, these Pharisees. They've studied the

Bible all their life, but he says you don't have the word abiding in you. There are a lot of Christians like that, too, that have had the

Bible in their lap their whole life and read it from time to time. Many of them read it through in a year every year and have done so for many years, but they don't have the word of God abiding in them.

And if Jesus walked up, they'd miss him today because we must have the word abiding within us.

Or we won't believe what God says is true. And then he goes on and says this little phrase.

Search the Scriptures. Search the Scriptures. For in them you think you have eternal life and they are they which testify of me.

So what ought we to find in the Scriptures? Jesus Christ. Every page.

And ye will not come to me that you might have life. Every page of the Old Testament.

Every page of the New Testament. It's all about Jesus Christ and that focal point in history. The cross.

And his death on the cross. And his resurrection. And his ascension.

And his session with the Father right now is all part of our salvation.

Well, he instructed them to search. Let me have you turn to Psalm 77 in verse 5.

Let's look at a couple of examples of people who knew how to search. I think

King David, of all people, is a great example. You have to understand that David did not even have the entire

Old Testament canon, let alone any of the New Testament. Because God gave his revelation down through time in sequence.

He did not give it all at once. That's one thing that we're going to learn next week as we study rightly dividing the word of truth.

Is that God gave his revelation in time. And so as he gave it, man became more responsible in different new areas that he had never been responsible for before.

And so God dealt with man in different ways throughout different times.

Or some call them dispensations. And so we're going to talk about that a little bit next time.

But he tells them to search. Now let's look at Psalm 77, 5. I have considered the days of old the years of ancient times.

What does David mean by that? He means that, I'll tell you exactly what he means. He is not just creating his own ideas about God.

There is a verse in the New Testament that says to avoid private interpretations. We're not supposed to just figure out what we think the

Bible says and then begin to teach that to people. Because a private interpretation can be very dangerous.

So he looked at the days of old and what others had said about God. He remembers back what his father and grandfather,

I'm sure, and the men of old had taught about God. Through their oral traditions and the years of the ancient times.

He would study the Pentateuch and all of these different things. But then look what he did in verse 6.

He says, I call to remembrance my song in the night. I commune with mine own heart.

And my spirit made diligent search. Isn't that something? Diligent search.

How many of us are in the practice of not just reading the Bible. But making diligent search for knowing

God better. That's what it's all about. And we're exhorted to search.

Not just to study. But to search. Jeremiah 29 .11, turn to that one.

Well, let's go on and look at verse 13. We'll save a little time there. 29 .13, Jeremiah 29 .13.

Jeremiah 29 .13 says, And ye shall seek me and find me when.

There's a condition to finding God. The condition is, he could just as well have put if.

But he says, when you shall search for me with all your heart.

Searching is very important. It is one of three great habits that we must develop in our lives.

In order to properly interpret scripture. And to know God. And to know God as he reveals himself to us.

He says, yes, you can find me. You will seek for me. And you can find me.

But you will only find out about me. And learn more of me. When you search for me with all of your heart.

And I will be found of you, sayeth the Lord. And I will turn away your captivity. That speaks to the nation of Israel.

But you know what? There is a teaching there for us. Because all of it was given for those of us who live in the last days.

And that is, we can be captive to certain sin habits. We can be captive to certain thought habits.

We can be captive to certain people. We can be captive to all manner of things.

Including the enemy himself. But what the Lord says is, As you search him with all your heart.

He will turn away your captivity. Isn't that a marvelous promise? It makes you free.

What did Jesus say? The truth shall set you free. And then in 1 Peter 1 10.

Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently. The old time,

Old Testament prophets searched about this salvation of Jesus Christ.

Their Messiah that was coming. They sought it diligently. The apostle Paul said that Jesus revealed things to him out there in the desert.

That these men never were able to see. But they sure searched for it. They searched and they searched. And they got little glimpses of it.

Little bits and pieces of it. And they searched diligently. Who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you.

So those in the Old Testament. Wrote scriptures under the inspiration of God. About the

New Testament age of grace. The church age. They couldn't understand it.

But they wrote about it. They saw little glimpses of it. Because they searched so diligently with what they had at the time.

And what God had given them in their day. So this morning. I want to ask the question.

How do we search? And I want to go to the scriptures to find the answer for that. So if you would turn to Romans chapter 8 first.

And it's interesting. Because this will also take us into a bit of some of the things we studied this week.

In Romans. Once we got to Romans chapter 8. About what it means to walk in the spirit versus walking in the flesh.

Because walking in the spirit is the only way you can search. And find God. You cannot find

Him in the flesh. So it ties together. This part here in Romans 8. We're going to be in verse 26.

But you have to understand. We would have already read chapter 5. Chapter 6. Chapter 7.

And all of the first part of chapter 8 of Romans. Before we got to verse 26. And we would understand all those principles.

And all those principles must be in place. Before we can properly interpret the word of God. And properly search.

Romans 5 talks about salvation. A person has to be saved before he can search the scriptures and find

God. Romans chapter 6 talks about. How we're baptized into His body.

And how we have victory over the flesh. And Romans 7 goes in.

And Paul tells a little bit about his early Christian life. Before he learned these principles. And how he struggled. And he said.

Oh wretched man that I am. Who will set me free from the body of this death. Thanks be to Jesus Christ my

Lord. And in Romans 8. You find him vaulting into victory.

The victorious Christian life. Learning to walk in the spirit. Not in the flesh.

And the apostle Paul certainly mastered that. He learned it. And he practiced it. And you go through all that.

Before you get down to verse 26. But now let's read it together. Romans 8 26. And we're asking the question.

How do we get to the place. Where we can search the scriptures. And find the sense God really is giving.

Rather than our own opinion. Likewise the spirit also helpeth our infirmities.

For we know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the spirit itself maketh intercession for us.

With groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts.

Knoweth what is the mind of the spirit. Because he maketh intercession for the saints. According to the will of God.

Now this speaks of prayer. But it also speaks of the fact. That our hearts are being searched.

Now God does something with that information. When your heart is searched.

What God does is he sees what you're searching for. He hears what you're searching for.

You can't describe it. The Holy Spirit has to take it from you. And take it before God with groanings.

Which we cannot even understand. And amplify it. And put it in the right language. And God understands exactly what's in your heart.

What you're searching for. I believe this is the first step. Now let's look at a little bit of this.

And figure out who's doing what though in this verse. When we look back at verse 26.

Towards the end it says. But the spirit itself maketh intercession for us. So who is making intercession at that point?

The Holy Spirit. With groanings which cannot be uttered. We can't understand this language.

He magnifies it to a divine language. Takes it to the

Father. Now we get into the first part of verse 27. If you don't read it kind of carefully.

You start to wonder who is doing what in this verse. It says. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the spirit.

Now that's a little bit of a confusing verse. If you think about it. Because what you're thinking is. You're thinking that it's the Holy Spirit.

That's in my heart searching around. And then it says. He knows the mind of the spirit. It's like he's saying he knows his own mind.

And so you start to figure out that's not what it's saying. Let's figure out first who this is that does the searching.

Turn with me to Revelation chapter 2 and verse 18. Revelation chapter 2 verse 18.

In verse 18 we'll find out who it is exactly that's doing the talking here. It says. Unto the angel of the church at Thyatira write.

These things saith the Son of God. So who is speaking here? With who?

Jesus Christ the Son of God. Now go down to verse 23. And I will kill her children with death.

And all the churches shall know. That I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts.

And I will give unto every one of you according to your works. Now you're in the context there.

He's talking about Jezebel and this false church. And doctrine and so forth. But we see very clearly that Jesus says.

It is he himself who searches the reins and the hearts. Now let's go back now into Romans chapter 8 verse 27.

And we find out the first he in verse 27 is Jesus Christ the Son of God. It is not the

Holy Spirit. It is Jesus Christ the Son of God. And so he

Jesus that searches the hearts. Knows what the mind of the Holy Spirit is.

Because he the Holy Spirit. Makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

Now it's interesting because when you go. If you go into Hebrews 7 24.

You're going to find out that Jesus. Well let's look at it. I want you to see it. It's beautiful. Hebrews 7 24.

Did I get that right? Yes. Hebrews 7 24.

Actually verse 25. But let's start with verse 24. But this man.

Because he continueth ever. Hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost.

That come unto God by him. Because in other words. That he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

This is what we call the session of Jesus Christ. This is the present tense of our salvation.

The past tense is accomplished on the cross. When he said it is finished. You are justified.

We'll talk a little bit this afternoon about what you get. And what you got because of that. But then he rose from the dead.

He ascended into heaven. He is seated at the right hand of the father. In what theologians call his session.

But during this time right now. What Jesus Christ is doing for us. He is living and making intercession for us.

That's why the Bible says in Romans chapter 8. That we are reconciled by his death.

But we are saved by his life. It is this intercession that keeps us saved.

In the present tense. So he is interceding for us now. But now with that knowledge. Let's go back now to Romans 8 verse 27.

We have two intercessors. We see that in verse 26. The Holy Spirit is the one that makes intercession for us.

While we are searching for God. Both in our prayer. But you are going to see in a minute.

That is going to rebound and come back. In our searching in the scriptures as well. And then it says he that searches our hearts.

Which is Jesus knows the mind of the Spirit. Now what we find here.

Is we see Jesus seated in the third heaven. At the right hand of God. We see that the

Holy Spirit is the one. Who both he and the Father sent. If you remember. He said it is expedient that I go.

That I return to the Father. And he said you ought to rejoice that I go to the Father. He says if I don't go to the

Father. Then I cannot send him. But he says if I do. I will send the Comforter. And so he sent the

Holy Spirit. Now the Holy Spirit lives in your heart. And you know what he does. He roams around in there.

And he sees everything in there. He sees your yearnings. He sees what you want to learn about God himself.

He sees what you need. He sees what you hope for. He sees your fears and removes them.

He roams around in there like a light. Like a flashlight. Looking under every nook and cranny.

Of your heart. And then you know what he does. He takes that information into the third heaven.

And presents it to Jesus. The one who's doing the searching. It's as if Jesus delegates the.

The roaming around to the Holy Spirit. And he brings the information back to Jesus. And now

Jesus knows the perfect information. About what's in your heart. Why? Because he knows the mind of the

Spirit. And the Spirit's been roaming around. In your heart. Communing with your

Spirit. Wow. This is amazing. Because he maketh intercession for the saints.

According to the will of God. This is the Holy Spirit interceding. He intercedes by taking this information to Jesus.

Who is your intercessor and advocate at the throne. And now Jesus has the information.

And he knows what you're searching for. Now. That's the first part.

Is that the Holy Spirit searches our hearts. And intercedes for us. By taking this information to the

Son of God. Who is really the true searcher of our hearts. And then we come to the next phase.

Turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 9. So the first part is that the

Holy Spirit searches our hearts. He does that by being in communion. And actually being connected with our own spirit.

As one. The Bible says that when we're walking in the Spirit. That our spirit becomes one with the

Spirit of God. And it gives physical marriage as an illustration of this.

Of how a man and a wife become one. You know. A man and a wife can be kind of like brother

Russell and Ann. And they can still be married. But they can be sitting on a different pew. You know.

Or they can be back in fellowship. And they can be sitting next to each other. Kind of like in the old days in a pickup truck.

She scooted right over next to him. And the Holy Spirit uses that as an illustration.

Marriage is the greatest illustration of salvation. In the whole Bible. And so that unity.

See when you're saved you're indwelt by the Spirit. When you get out of fellowship with God.

You're not divorced. The Holy Spirit still lives in the house. But you're not connected. And when you get right with each other.

You have that sweet communion again. And that oneness. And that's how this works. And because the

Holy Spirit has that communion with your spirit. He knows everything you're searching for. And He takes this to the

Lord Jesus. That's the first step. Now let's look at the second thing that's going on here. The Holy Spirit has another work that He performs that is awesome.

1 Corinthians 2 .9 But as it is written,

I hath not seen nor ear heard. Neither have entered into the heart of man.

So there is no way that you can go inside yourself. And find God. You don't have a clue.

That's why David was searching the ancients. He was reading the word of God that he had. And studying what

Moses had written. And searching. And then he let his heart commune.

And his heart began to search with some information. And knowledge that he already had. You can't do this without some knowledge that comes from the word.

But he says that it has not entered into the heart of man. The things which

God hath prepared for them that love Him. So as you begin to search God.

And know God Himself. And the things that He has prepared for you. You have to understand that it's not within your heart to find these things.

If you're just on your own. But look what verse 10 says. But God hath revealed them to us by His Spirit.

Because the Spirit searches all things. You see the Spirit of God does not just search your heart.

And roam around in there and find all your needs. He searches all things. He searches yea even the deep things of God.

Is that awesome? For what man knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of a man which is in him.

God uses us as an example for us to try to understand God a little bit. He says what man in this room can know

David better than David's own spirit. You don't know me. You just think you do. You see me on the outside but my spirit knows me.

My own spirit knows everything about me. Your spirit knows everything about you. Well this is saying the same is true.

The Holy Spirit knows everything about God. For what man knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of a man which is in him.

Even so in other words this is an illustration of the fact. That the things of God knoweth no man but the

Spirit of God. So the Spirit of God roams around in your heart. Finds all your needs.

Finds your emptiness. Finds your weeping and your wailing. He finds your seeking and your searching.

And he also roams around in the heart and mind of God and knows everything about God.

He is in fact the Spirit of God. Now the Bible says that these things are revealed to us by His Spirit.

Why is that possible? Because the Holy Spirit knows these things. He can both look in your heart and see what you want to know about God.

And He can go into God's heart and know everything about God. And He can come back and He'll teach you exactly what

He chooses to teach you at that moment. Based on what you need. So we cannot find the deep things of God unless the

Holy Spirit teaches them to us. Now look at verse 12.

1 Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 12. Now we have received not the

Spirit of the world but the Spirit which is of God. That we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

We might know them. This is all about searching. But it gives us a little more information here that's very important.

There are two aspects that are mentioned here. One is negative. And the other is positive.

And I'm talking about down here in verse 12. Look at the negative aspect. Now we have received not the

Spirit of the world. Now you can just read right over that and not realize that's a major part in learning how to search the

Lord's mind. And to interpret scriptures properly. The first thing that we've got to understand is we have got to get the

Spirit of the world out of us. You cannot properly search the scriptures if you have the

Spirit of the world. Now turn with me back to a couple of verses back to... Well we're going back into Romans 8.

But I want to go earlier in the chapter than where we were. Verse 5.

What I see the Lord telling us is that there are... First two aspects to searching.

And one is understanding that the Holy Spirit searches your heart. And then He searches God's heart. And He can bring to your heart the things that He knows about God.

And now we come into verse 12. We find two additional aspects. One is that this will not happen so long as we have the

Spirit of the world in our life. And secondly, it will happen so long as we have the

Spirit of God in our life. And we're walking in union with that Spirit.

We can't be sitting on two different pews. Thank you so much for that illustration, Brother Russell. It was perfect.

It was ordained of God. You just thought you messed up. You didn't. You got to be sitting in the same pew to learn the scriptures.

Romans 8, 5 says, This is one of the things

I challenge the young people with. I said, where is your mind? What are you thinking about predominantly in your days?

Go back last week and the week before. Tell me what you're thinking about. Are you thinking about a hobby? Are you thinking about a person?

Is your mind so wrapped up in a person that that person becomes your God? For they that are after the flesh think about the things of the flesh.

But they that are after the Spirit mind the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Now let's think about this a minute. It's something we learned out here this week together. You see where it says to be carnally minded is death?

If you're like me, you've spent most of your years reading that verse, thinking that that just talks about the fact that if you sin, eventually you're going to experience physical death.

Just like Adam and Eve did eventually. And actually it's not talking about physical death any more than God was when he told

Adam and Eve the day that you eat the fruit thereof you shall die. Because they died that day. Now they didn't die physically for years.

I don't remember how many brother elders would know. But they died that day.

So it speaks of spiritual death. Now I have to always practice remembering this or I get all confused about death.

Even all the time I get confused about it. Death is not cessation of life.

That's how we think of it. We think it means life ends. That's not what death is. Death is separation.

The life continues, but it's separated from something. Physical death is the separation of your soul and your spirit from your body.

It just means separation. It doesn't mean you cease to exist. Spiritual death is the separation of your soul from God.

So death always means separation. Now when we keep that in mind, this becomes a little bit enlightening, but also saddening and frightening when we understand what

God is telling us. They that are after the flesh think about the things of the flesh.

They think about physical things, carnal things. It predominates their mind. Now, things that are after the spirit think about the things of the spirit.

But those who are minding the things of the flesh to be carnally minded is separation.

Now I want you to picture, and this is written to Christians by the way, I want you to picture yourselves,

I want you to picture your spirit connected to the Holy Spirit in your mind somewhere.

That's where he is. And there is a vital union and connection there. Picture the fact that all of a sudden, for whatever reason, your flesh draws your mind to itself, or to something the world is offering, some titillating thing, and all of a sudden your mind is drawn away from spiritual things, and from the

Lord, and from His things, and is drawn into towards carnal things, and fleshly things, and you begin to dwell in that area for a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a week, or a month.

Do you know that when you do that, separation occurs? And you are separated from the Holy Spirit.

Not that He leaves you, because He is sealed within you. He is in the same room, but He is not in the same pew.

You are not sitting together. You are at odds with one another, because, look at verse 8,

So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. Look at verse 7, Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be.

You are in the same room, you are still married, you are still saved, but the Holy Spirit is not pleased with you, and your spirit is over here ministering to the body, and the flesh, and the soulish part of you, and then there is a separation, and guess what?

At that moment, you can't learn one thing about God. If you go to the scriptures, it is very dangerous, because you are going to come up with a private interpretation.

You are going to come up with a doctrine of demons, perhaps. Paul spoke about doctrines of demons.

You are going to come up with a falsehood right out of the very Bible, because you did not come to the place where the

Holy Spirit was your teacher, because you were not even connected, you were dead. But remember, dead doesn't mean dead like we think of it, it means separated.

We are separated from the very teacher himself. We were separated from the one who travels where he wants to travel within God, and knows everything about God, and we separated ourselves from him and pretend to study the

Bible, pretend to learn about God, when the only one who knows anything about God is the one who wrote this

Bible, the Holy Spirit. And he wrote this Bible in such a way that it is just strange enough, where in the flesh you can't understand a thing about it.

You can't know God from the Bible in the flesh. It is impossible. Why do we have Mormons?

Why do we have Jehovah's Witnesses? Why do we have Church of Christ doctrine? Why do we have perverted

Baptist beliefs and traditions and all the different things? How many things have we looked at this last year or two, that we've always believed because we've always heard it, and the

Bible didn't even teach it? Where do those things come from? We hear them from men of God and preachers. They came from times in study when the

Holy Spirit was separated from the spirit of that man that learned those things and put them in a book somewhere and taught them.

And then they become as if they're truth when they didn't even come from God. So, how do we search?

The first exhortation is we must be separated from the spirit of the world.

We must be separated from the spirit of the world. The flesh cannot do this. It says,

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the spirit. If so, be the spirit of God dwell in you.

Now, if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his. This is like a parenthesis in the passage.

It's positional truth. But then it goes right back to experiential truth in verses, or you can go all the way back into chapter 6, verses 5 through 8, positional, and verses 11 through 14, experiential.

In Romans, it goes back and forth. It is our position that once we're saved, the

Holy Spirit dwells within us. But from a point of view of experience, sometimes we separate ourselves from him through being in the flesh.

And the exhortation is not to let that happen. Now, if you go down to Romans chapter 8, in verse 14,

For as many as are led by the spirit of God, they are the sons of God. It's a great way to check your salvation out.

Are you predominantly led by the flesh or by the spirit? Do you predominantly mind the things of the flesh or the things of the spirit?

For you have not received the spirit of bondage, again to fear. Do you live in fear?

Do you live in bondage to sin and you just can't break out from it? You might want to check your salvation out.

But ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Daddy, Abba, Father.

The spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.

And if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together.

So this passage of scripture in Romans chapter 8 certainly speaks to this thought of the fact that we cannot have the spirit of the world improperly interpret scripture.

Now, let me go into Galatians chapter 8 with you for a moment. Look at the area here where it speaks of the fruits of the spirit.

Galatians 8 .22 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long -suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.

Against such there is no law. And they that are Christ have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

If we live in the spirit, that's positional. If you live in the spirit, it means you're saved.

Am I in the right place? Galatians 8. That's 5. Okay. I thought so. Galatians 5.

I knew I must have said it wrong because everybody's flipping the pages. Sorry, it's Galatians 5. Starting with verse 22.

But now we're down to verse 25. And I want you to notice that we have positional truth and we have experiential all in the same verse.

If we live in the spirit, that's positional. If you're saved, you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in your life.

It says, then let us also walk in the spirit. That's experience. And that's where you can choose to walk in the flesh or you can walk in the spirit.

The Bible says since you are saved and you live in the spirit, you ought to walk that way. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another.

Interesting, the Greek word for provoke means to irritate. We're not to be irritating one another or envying one another.

Now look down here at the fruits of the flesh. Look at Galatians 5 .19.

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, which in the

Greek can mean resentment. Variance, which in the Greek is the expression of resentment.

Emulations, which means jealousy, factions, and self -will. Wrath, strife, which means in the

Greek ambition, ungodly ambition. Seditions, which in the

Greek means division. And heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and then other stuff that's like these things.

Such like. So these are the works of the flesh. Now God makes it possible for us to examine our own selves and our walk.

And we can see if we are predominantly minding the things found from verse 19 -21.

Or are we predominantly in the area of chapter 5 verses 22 -26. If you're down in the, or up there in the 19 -21st verse, then the

Bible says you have the spirit of the world. And you cannot properly interpret the scriptures.

If you're predominantly walking in 22 -26, then the

Bible says that the Holy Spirit who searches the heart and mind of God will bring that information to you as he sees you seeking for it.

Now back in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 10. This word deep is bathos, which means the profundity of God.

It means the mystery of God. The Holy Spirit searches the deep, mysterious, profound things of God and can bring them to you if you'll be not separated.

If you'll be not dead walking in the flesh. The deep things of God.

The word deep comes from a base Greek word which is bathos, which means to walk.

Do you understand that the Holy Spirit searches the deep, profound, mysterious things, yea even the walk of God.

You not only can know the person of God, you can know his ways as the

Holy Spirit is connected to your spirit while you're studying the scriptures. I don't believe it's possible to come in and out of this and be a very good

Bible interpreter. I don't believe that it's too possible to walk in the world all week and in the spirit of the world and walk in the flesh and then come in and say well it's time for me to study the

Bible and just to click it on. The Holy Spirit can be grieved. He can be quenched.

And he gives marriage as an example. We must go back to it again and again. Gentlemen, when you grieve your wife, do you just automatically hop right back in her arms the next moment?

You grieve her all week and all of a sudden the weekend comes, you want to go out and find a nice place to go and hop right back in her arms.

Raise your hand if it works that way because I've got to get notes from you. I don't think it works that way.

You know why it doesn't work that way? Because God built marriage that way to teach us this object lesson.

It's not an accident. It's not like God looked down and said oh but marriage is that way, I think I'll use that as an example. No, he made marriage that way.

So that we can learn what he is like and what the Holy Spirit is like. If you want to grieve and quench the

Holy Spirit all week and then come and prepare your Bible lesson for Sunday school Sunday or your sermon for Sunday, guess what?

You can prepare it but you're not going to have the aid of the one who wrote it. That's a frightening thing, isn't it?

Your teacher says he's in fear when he sits before you to teach. There aren't enough people like that in this country.

Most of them just hop right in there and they get right in there, open that Bible and get that message, boy.

And where have they been all week? Those things matter a great deal. The deep things of God, the profound, the mysterious, the walk of God.

Only the Holy Spirit knows these things and only he can bring them to us. For what man knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of man which is in him?

Even so the things of God knoweth no man but the spirit of God. So we cannot find the deep things of God unless the

Holy Spirit teaches them to us. And we cannot learn them if we have the spirit of the world.

So therefore we must receive the spirit which is of God. 1 Corinthians 2 .12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world but the spirit which is of God.

Now here's the positive part. We receive not the world. The positive part is we do receive the

Holy Spirit. What do we mean we receive him? It means that he always indwells us.

But we receive him with open arms rather than receiving the things of the world in our flesh.

We choose rather than to be pleasing our flesh to be in the arms of the Holy Spirit.

It's a choice you make and you make it many times a day. And depending on which choice you make will determine whether you sin or not because while you're in his arms you cannot sin.

In fact I'm not going to teach this yet because I'm not sure of it but I had a thought that Russell and I spoke about on the trip.

Could it be that the new man is nothing more than your spirit in the arms of the

Holy Spirit and the old man is nothing more than the death, the separation, your spirit not in unity with the

Holy Spirit? I don't know but I'm going to search that and you can too but it's sure a thought isn't it? But look at this.

We'll receive not the spirit of the world but the spirit which is of God that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God.

They're already given we just don't know them yet. How do we know them? We put aside the flesh.

We predominantly walk in the spirit. We show the Holy Spirit that that's what we care about.

That's what we're interested in. That's what we mind. That's what we think about. And you know what he does?

He somehow travels. I don't know how many light years away into that third heaven.

He tells Jesus Christ what he found when he searched in your heart. He says you know what I found Jesus? They're searching for you.

They put aside the flesh even though it's pulling against them. They put it aside. In fact they killed the flesh.

They made the separation of death of the flesh. They crucified the flesh. So what can

I give them today? And Jesus and maybe they have a council. And the

Holy Spirit roams around up there. And he finds some things in the heart and mind of God that he knows you were searching for.

And he brings it right into you. And he's connected to your spirit anyway. And all of a sudden you learn something.

He said man that's great. Look what I learned. Look what God showed me today in this scripture. I've read it a thousand times.