Jonathan Foster- Stop Ignoring the Holy Spirit

However, this is. He grew up on the other side of the mountains in North Carolina, moved down into the more rolling hills of the

Piedmont in Newton where he pastors Vertical Life Church, lives there with his wife and two children, and he is coming to preach to us this morning about the

Holy Spirit. I believe from the book of Romans. Romans? The Bible's all good, so he's going to give it to us from somewhere in the

Bible, hopefully. Listen, pay attention, and be blessed this morning.

I was slightly confused because on our program, it said we're taking turns introducing each other, and right beside my name, it said

Jonathan Foster self, and for some reason,

Dan, I just thought that meant I had to introduce myself, that I didn't have anybody to introduce me, and Dan's like, I got you, and I'm like, but it said self, and then

I'm like, that's what I just told Becky. I was like, duh, it's Dan self, so forgive me. So that's why there may have been a little bit of confusion there.

We are going to end in the book of Romans, but I would like for you to turn your Bibles to the gospel of John. The gospel of John, we're going to start in chapter 14.

For all of us, we all love to exposit the word, and it's something that we do convictionally, but we're also in a manner throughout a conference that is going to have some topical feel, so I will have you stand in just a minute,

Brother Claude, but I want to give a bit of introduction before we read the text this morning.

I believe there has never been anything that God the Father and God the

Son has done separate from the involvement of the Holy Spirit as well.

You with me? And my task this morning is to give us an introduction to the conference, and the title of this is

Stop Ignoring the Holy Spirit. I feel like it's one of the pieces of the puzzle in church today that is so quickly overlooked, and when we begin to pray about the theme and what

God is leading us to equip the church, the first question we had is, what is one of the most necessary messages that we could bring to the church?

And after a while, that's what we arrived at. It is very clear in modern -day church, unfortunately, there are so many that are just simply ignoring, even very few times even mentioning the

Holy Spirit, and we have become more and more less dependent upon Him, more and more less dependent, acknowledge

His presence, and more and more less dependent upon Him, and as a result, we've attempted to replace the

Holy Spirit with education and reasoning. Now, don't take that as a shot. We love education.

I have seminary degrees and whatever else, but I heard old preachers say you can have enough degrees to give you a fever, but that don't make you a man of God, and the reality is this.

We've attempted to be rational when it comes to the ministry of God, and we want to explain away things that are supernatural if possible, and the reality is this.

We are dealing with a supernatural God. He has created laws in our earth.

He has created things of order and things of reason, but I've asked the question many times, why does

God make us live in the boundary of law and order, and as I was driving over here going across those curves, it was fun, and I was amazed at my big old truck.

I'd go across it, you know, and you go across on them hills, and your stomach goes whoop, you know. Why? Because the law of gravity.

It keeps your truck like pinned down. If not, I'd have been flying over here, you know. We have laws and things that we're bound to.

We're natural, and God is supernatural. Even the gift of salvation in and of itself.

If you begin to ponder just the thought, and we'll use this word later, of regeneration, and the washing, and the renewing, and the regenerating work of the

Holy Spirit, anytime that becomes natural and common, we're missing a marvelous work of God, and so as a result, we become dependent upon professionalism, and career pastors, and career ministers.

Much of what we see in the visible church today, sadly, I believe is boiled down to pragmatism, and powerless strategy, and often, in its worst instances, coercion, and manipulation of people, pandering to emotions, and people pleasing, and listen, we need in the house of God, an awakening to the power of God that is only brought by the

Spirit of God. I hope, and you will, as these men of God stand before you, and deliver these messages, you're going to hear messages about Spirit -empowered evangelism.

It is foolish to think that we can share the gospel with our neighbors without the power of the Spirit helping us deliver that message.

Spirit -empowered preaching, it is foolish to think that a man could come up here with lots of degrees, and lots of education, but make any impact unless the

Spirit of God is breathing through that message. Anything else that you want to look at in the local church, it's foolish to think that we could accomplish anything apart from the work of the

Holy Spirit, for Christ said, you can do nothing apart from me. But in Him, what?

All things are. Let's say that again, one more time. In Him, all things are.

Possible. Supernatural things. And again, when we talk about the Holy Spirit, I know that we want to, all of a sudden, run to supernatural things.

There are ordinary things that the Holy Spirit does that's supernatural. Me standing in front of you today to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ is a supernatural thing, because I'm an old hillbilly from the hills of North Carolina, and I was a

God -hater, I was a racist, and now I got a brother that I talk Spanish with, I can if I want to, amen?

I hated Spanish people growing up, and I hated black people, and everybody else, and the Spirit of God moved upon this old country boy one day, and changed my life.

That is a supernatural thing that only the Spirit of God could do. We are to be a church that's dispelling light.

You are the light of the world, a city that doesn't sit on a hillside. So let your light so shine before men that they're going to see your good works, and that they will glorify your

Father which is in heaven. How in the world do we think we're going to do that by flesh? So stop ignoring the

Holy Spirit. We need empowered churches, because we have a powerful message.

Now some reasons that we begin to ignore the Holy Spirit, it really does boil down to fear, and as way of introduction,

I just want to just squash a few things so that there is a freedom among us to study this passionately.

Number one, we've become afraid to speak of the Holy Spirit because of the foolishness that we see and hear when horrifying and ungodly acts are done in His name.

Worship services, so -called ministries have hijacked by men and imposter spirits, and I do believe there's false spirits and imitators of the

Holy Spirit have hijacked many churches and hijacked many worship services, and we swing and we react to that because we don't want to look anything like that because we know that's false, and so therefore we swing way over here because we're assuming that if we mention the

Holy Spirit, they automatically associate us with that. The reality is this, we should not be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Anybody can quote that for me? Where's that from? Romans 1, 16. The apostle

Paul says, for I am unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ because it's what? It's the power of God unto salvation, and listen, the

Holy Spirit, we were talking about this over breakfast this morning, the Holy Spirit, the gift of God, and this

Himself, if you will, giving Himself to us, not just dwelling around us but filling us and being within us, that is a part of the gospel.

The gospel is simply translated good news, and it is wonderful news that I was, as what

I told you just a few minutes ago, I was an old country hillbilly, a wicked man, and God saved me.

Well, that's good news, the gospel. I heard the story of the cross, the message of the cross, and the power of the resurrection, and God changed me, but is that where it stopped?

Is that all the good news we have? Well, I hope today by the end of this message you hear quite a bit more because the gospel is the good news of salvation, but the gospel is also now that I am reconciled with God, I have peace with God, I now have right relationship with God, and I walk with Him.

Amen? I abide in Him and He abides in me. That's good news.

And so the Holy Spirit is how that happens, by the way. So we shouldn't overreact.

That's what I would tell us today is if someone differs in some format or nuance within orthodoxy of the doctrines of the

Holy Spirit, don't overreact to each other. But in its extremes, it's very dangerous.

Even among our group, the Truth and Love Network, the Laborers Conference, even among ourselves, we love to spar and poke at each other.

Let me go ahead and drop two fancy words for you. Cessationists. We should poll the congregation, right?

No, let's don't. It's all right. Cessationists and Continualists.

And our group has a diversity of that. We have some that would be more of an extreme cessationist, perhaps you could say, that would say that as far as supernatural gifts or miraculous signs and wonders, they no longer occur anywhere on the earth any more time at all.

We have also others that might be soft cessationists to say it's possible that God could do that, but it's not normative that God could do that.

We also have Continualists, and some of us call ourselves Continualists with the seatbelt, all right?

We say that we come from 1 Corinthians chapter 12, that the Holy Spirit gives gifts as He wills.

God's sovereign, the Son's sovereign, that means the Holy Spirit's sovereign, that way He does what He wants to. So our job is to what?

To surrender to Him, so it's possible. However you logic this, there is very, very big differences in some of those things, right?

And we poke each other about it all the time. I'm like the old grumpy bear, when they start poking,

I'm just like, I'm done, you know? So can there be differences?

Of course there can be. And it's not only because of our reaction to the extremists of the charismaniacs is what

I'll call them sometimes, but it's also the fear of differences that keeps us quiet and keeps us from engaging in something so beautiful that God has given us called the

Holy Spirit. Listen, our differences and our diversity are just an image of who

God is. Because in the reality of this, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

He hasn't changed Himself. And how He's moving and working in the earth, we'll never know the ends of all of it.

I don't know everything that God is doing in the Middle East right now. There's chaos, there's war.

But don't you think that the Spirit of God is moving and working in that place right now? Do I know everything that He's doing there?

Do I know everything that He's doing in the Amazon? Do I know everything that He's doing in Africa or Central or South America or in the

Antarctic or wherever? You think worldwide, do I know everything that God is doing?

We're foolish to say we do. So at the end of the day, we step back and say, you know what, my conviction is this at this point in time in my life, but we all reserve the right to be wrong.

Amen? We should have that attitude. We should have that attitude because the moment that we think that we have arrived at the fullness of the knowledge of God is the moment that we have really become a fool.

So even in our differences, we should boldly speak clearly about our unity around the absolute necessity of the church of Jesus Christ to be dependent upon the

Holy Spirit. And as we declare that, then we can say, well, let's talk about this text.

Let's talk about this belief. Let's talk about this conviction. Let's talk about this historical perspective or whatever else you want to bring into it.

But that's not the goal of this conference. We're not going to solve that problem here. Just know that that's been a discussion for centuries.

We're not going to solve that here. That's not our goal. Our goal is to equip the church with the reality of the necessity of the

Holy Spirit. Are you with me now? So as we do this, let us not be ashamed.

Let us plainly know that we have a father, a son, and the

Holy Spirit. Now, stand in honor of the reading of God's word, if you will. We're going to be in John chapter 14.

John chapter 14. We're going to begin reading in verse 18, and then we're going to flip right over just a couple of chapters there to verse chapter 16.

So in John chapter 14, verses 15 through 18, it says, if you love me, you will keep my commandments.

And I will ask the Father, which is being He. I hope you'll recognize that if you write in your

Bibles. I'd encourage you to circle the word He. It's very unique here. I will ask the Father, Jesus said, and He, being the

Father, will give you another helper to be with you for how long?

Isn't that good news? Remember, we're talking about the gospel, right? Good news. He's going to be with you forever.

Even the spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees

Him nor knows Him. Now, this is unique, and I enjoyed working this out real quickly.

You know Him, speaking to those early disciples right then. Notice how

Jesus describes it. For He dwells with you and will be, future tense, will be in you.

See, Pentecost hasn't happened at this moment, right? So the spirit is dwelling with them, and then

He's saying, and soon, not only dwelling among you, but will be in you.

And praise God for the church today that the Holy Spirit is in us. He's not just dwelling in this room.

He is in us. So now flip over a couple of chapters out of John chapter 16.

John chapter 16, beginning in verse 7, it says, Nevertheless, I tell you the truth.

It is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the helper will not come to you.

But if I go, I, who's speaking there? Remember when we looked at the other one, who's sending?

It's coming from the Father. Now Jesus is saying, now I, I will send him to you.

Roll on down to verse 13. When the spirit of truth comes, He will guide you in all truth.

For He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears, He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come.

He will glorify me, for He will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Father, thank you so much for your word. And as we continue through this, this message and messages to come,

I pray that by you whole Holy Spirit, that you will be our teacher, that you will illuminate our minds and our hearts to how precious you are, the promise and the gift.

Thank you that you are with us now. Help us in the remainder of this time in Jesus name.

Amen. You may be seated. Don't you like it when Jesus prays on your behalf?

Don't you think about that? Jesus, first of all, says, I'm going to go to the Father. And when I go to the Father, I'm going to ask my

Father on your behalf for something very special. The Holy Spirit says,

I will ask the Father to give you another. That comes from the Greek word alos. Alos is another. Some commentators say it's another

Jesus, is what Jesus is saying. I'm going to give you another me, which in essence is exactly what he did, right?

A helper, one that walks with us. The helper clearly is the Holy Spirit that Jesus asked the

Father to give. And then not only does the Father give, but then Jesus gives. And so wouldn't we, or shouldn't we assume that anything that the

Father is giving and Jesus is giving, that's kind of neat how John in his writing there said the

Father will send, then Jesus said, I will give. And so if the Father's sending and Jesus is giving, don't you think it would be good?

Don't you think he, the person of the Holy Spirit is good? Therefore, why would we be ashamed of anything that the

Father gives us? How many of you got a new car when from your dad, when you got your license?

Anybody? No, you didn't. All right. Well, I got a 1979

Mercury Cougar. I was not proud of that car.

For an old country boy like me, we wanted trucks and Jeeps, right? And this little old lady in our church, she decided that she was going to give me her 1979

Mercury Cougar. It got me to school and back to ball practice and back and the things there, but I was not riding around town saying, everybody look at my grandma car.

No offense, ladies, grand ladies. Okay. No offense. But for, but for a young strapping teenager, that is, that was not my dream, but I can remember that I would park in the back of school and I'd wait till everybody leaves.

And then I would drive my Mercury Cougar when nobody was around. But listen, I got a 19, 19,

I think it was 80 or 82. It's the last year they made them CJ7 Jeep right after that.

Now, listen, that thing was bad to the bone. I parked up front. I wasn't ashamed of that thing at all.

I wanted everybody to know that I had a new Jeep when I got rid of the old car.

Listen, the reality is this so many times in churches, we take the gifts of God and we treat them like the old car.

When, when the reality is, man was something we ought to be thankful for and proud of.

Jesus told them right here. He said, this is unique for you. He says, the world cannot see this nor receive this.

This is not for the world. This is not just for anybody. This is for the children of God. This is for my people. Jesus is saying, this is, this is for us.

And it's unique to us. And no one else in the whole world is going to have this promise and this gift.

Therefore there is an unashamedness of the gospel. There is an unashamedness of who the Holy spirit is and this helper.

Do you think that we need help? Do we? I think that's also a danger that we see in Americanized church.

If you spend time in third world countries where there's genuine suffering happening, you will recognize there's a greater dependence upon the

Holy spirit. But right now I can be honest with you. I have very little need for anything, very little need.

By the way I look, you can tell I'm not very hungry. Very often driving a nice vehicle.

I got nice clothes on. My children are well -educated. We got a nice home that we live in. So on and so forth, whatever you want to say,

I have very little need for anything. And so therefore, if I'm not careful,

I have very little need for a dependency on God, on the Holy spirit because I'm so comfortable.

We must be careful. We should be grateful for the blessings of God when he has provided for us.

We should be grateful when we have these things, but it must not be what we become dependent upon because we need help.

We need help in all areas of Christian walk, all areas of Christian life.

We need help with that. And that is why Jesus says, I'm going to send you the helper.

You can't do this in your flesh. You can't do this in your brilliance. You can't do this among your logic is an absolute requirement that we have to have help in order to walk this life.

And so Jesus says, I'm going to send one to you. He's going to be the helper. It's going to be the, and I always ravaged this

Greek word, the parakletos. I don't know, parakletos. A lot of us called it and redneck and knees the paraclete, but that ain't really what it is.

It's got a, it's got that little half and in there and you got to enroll it just a little bit. But the helper, the helper is the one that the father gives.

And the helper is the one that Jesus gives. And the helper is exactly the one that why you see in the writing of the gospel of Luke and later on in the writing of the book of Acts, there's very few times that we see anywhere that anybody did anything except there was a descriptor that by the spirit or dependent upon the spirit or through the spirit, we never see a description of the apostle

Paul saying written about him or Peter or John or any of them saying by their power, look what they did.

Matter of fact, I love the book of Acts in chapter four. It says, these were just go to common men, the

Pharisees and the Sanhedrin. They were, they were astonished when they stood before them in Acts chapter four.

They were astonished that these men could do anything, but it come very obvious that they had spent time with Jesus.

And the reality is they stood before the Sanhedrin and they told him to stop speaking in the name of Jesus in the spirit.

They spoke boldly. They said, don't worry. Jesus had told him, said, don't worry about what you're going to say, because when you're on trial,

I'll give you the words to say, how's he going to give words in the spirit? And they looked at the, these mighty men of God, the educated and the elite of society and said, whether it's right or not for you to speak in the name of Jesus, you have to decide.

But as for us, we can't help but speak of the things that we've seen and we've heard. The spirit is the one that not only helps, but another term, one commentator that I saw wrote the word enabler.

He's the enabler. He's the one that who supernaturally energizes us for Christlike life and ministry.

The point is that we just don't need a little bit of help or a little bit of push. That's not how the scripture describes our relationship with the

Holy Spirit. It's not just a little push or a little help or a little bit of a, a little bit of a sidekick.

He's not our bro. He's not our buddy. He's not our co -pilot. That's not who the Holy Spirit is. The work of the

Holy Spirit is that we are broken and undone. And apart from him, we do nothing. It's similar to the work of our salvation.

And it is the enabler that pushes us and drives us. We were talking about that over breakfast this morning in Philippians chapter two, verse 12 and 13.

We were talking in a different conversation, but in it fits here in verse 13, it is the

Holy Spirit that presses us, moves us.

And this commentator, I agree with him. He said, there's no bench players on God's team. You believe that today, church?

See, there is specific callings that we have to stand and deliver this message. But when I'm looking with you and talking with you today, this is no elite guy up here.

I feel like the least among our whole group. And there's no elitism here. Sure, there's some people here that's really, really smart.

And they use like $5 words that are 10 miles long, right? Tyler, tone it down, buddy.

Come on. And that's wonderful. It's wonderful.

But sometimes it's like, Tom out, define what you just said. But there's no bench players.

There's no big me's and little you's. The whole point of this conference is to equip the church for the work of ministry.

The moment that any of us as pastors and leaders and shepherds and, and equipers and teachers, the moment that we ever forget that the reason the

Holy Spirit has given us this position is not to boast in ourselves, but it is to equip the saints for the work of ministry.

The moment that we forget that the moment we've gone contrary to the very teachings of the word of God. Saints today, you need to hear me that we're here not to expose to you some great theological secrets.

We're here to remind you that you are filled with the Holy Spirit. You have the spirit of God in you, and you are the ones that will go about doing the work of ministry.

And we are co -laborers with Christ together, one body, one heart, one mind, one soul working for the glory of Christ.

And we do it together through the Holy Spirit. Now, how many of you feel a little threatened by that?

The evidence that we're threatened by the work of ministry is because we see nothing but our own ability.

It is a fearful thing. I literally tremble when I think about preaching in front of you today.

Why? Because I know there's tremendous theological minds here. I know your preacher from Reformata, and Reformata, thank you so much for the hospitality.

I listen to his messages, and I listen to him espouse the word of God, and I'm like, man, I just feel dumb today.

I get in the group sometimes, and we talk, and we hear those things, and I like to talk.

The guys will tell you that pretty quick. But at the end of the day, we're just co -laborers.

We're just co -laborers. We're just brothers and sisters. There's no one greater than any other, all pointing to Christ.

But we can be intimidating. So I want to eliminate here in the last part of this sermon,

I want to try to annihilate by the doctrine of the Holy Spirit and truths about the

Holy Spirit that you all have a helper, and we need to stop ignoring him.

So here comes the application. So I know that's blasting through a lot of theological things, and trying to give an introduction, but here comes our application.

I want you to understand that by the Holy Spirit, by Jesus giving us the Holy Spirit, he give us a helper, which is the provision that we need in order to do ministry.

The advantages, the goodness of the Holy Spirit is this provision. He is known as the helper.

He's known as the teacher. He's known as the comforter. He's known as the glorifier, and he's known as the gift giver.

All these things come right here in just the text that we read. Everything that you need in Christ is given, and how is it given?

By the Holy Spirit. So therefore, you have a helper. You have a teacher who's going to guide you in all manners of truth, and he's going to declare to you the things of Jesus.

Have you ever read the Bible and have a difficult time understanding it? What is your first reaction when you do?

Well, let me run to Google. Listen, there's nothing wrong with Google. There's nothing wrong with commentators and commentaries, but you know, commentaries are written by a lot of times just commentators.

Sorry, that's a bad joke. Sorry, guys. Trying to lighten it just a little bit, but those men have studied, and I praise

God for them. They give us shortcuts to that. They help us quickly get to it. I'm thankful for people who've done diligent study, but the reality is this.

We, a lot of times, can quote what dead men have said, but more and more rarely do

I hear about a man of God who's got along with the Word of God and the

Spirit of God and through the Word of God become to great conviction. Then take your conviction and test it by all means.

Test it among the brethren. Test it among each other, but listen, you cannot replace the

Word of God and the Spirit of God and then intimacy with that with anything else because he will declare it to you.

How? He declares it through the Word of God, by the study of the Word of God. Brother Keith and his family, they've lost a loved one this week.

I'm thankful for the Spirit of God who's a comforter, a comforter in our times of need, a comforter in our times of brokenness, and have you ever wondered just for a moment how the early apostles died so well?

Have you ever thought about that just for a second? I mean, are we prepared to be martyrs?

Now, I don't even think there's people that would go to fight for revolutionary like the volunteers did, much less stand for Christ in a manner that would cost us our life.

Maybe we would put under fire under the gun, but I believe the evidence under fire or under the gun, the evidence would be proven now, not in that moment.

So under fire, who's going to comfort us? Under stress, who's going to comfort us?

You know, it's a big election year. I mean, you're going to be voting for the Savior, right?

Easy. I promise you there's no one that goes to that White House will ever save anybody. Jesus said in this life, you're going to have a lot of trouble.

He said, but be of good cheer, I've overcome. And how do we overcome? By the

Spirit of Christ. How many want to give glory to Jesus? Do we not?

Do we not want to glorify God? We want to give glory to Jesus. Jesus said here that I'm going to send the one who will glorify me.

If you really have a deep desire in you to be a glorifier, then you know what you need to do?

You need to get in tune with the Holy Spirit. You need to be filled with the Holy Spirit because by the filling of the

Spirit, by an understanding and a relinquishing to the control of the Spirit of God, then guess what the

Spirit of God will do? He will declare to you truth, teach you things, and by walking in the

Spirit, you will glorify Jesus. I hear people all the time want to learn how to glorify

God, and then they take some kind of fleshly means in attempting to do that.

The Holy Spirit is the glorifier, and he empowers the saints to glorify. And the

Holy Spirit is the gift giver. I will not be ashamed of that. I know there's differences in understanding of that, but nonetheless, the

Spirit of God is still gifting the church of Jesus Christ to accomplish and to do His will and to do

His works. Apart from that, I could not stand here and do anything. So church, when the

Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you in all truth. He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever

He hears, He will speak. In other words, He's hearing directly from the Father. He's hearing from the Son, and He's speaking to us, and He will declare these things that are to come.

He will glorify me. And then look what happens to this early church.

Flip over to your Bibles to Acts chapter 9. For see, these early apostles, and this past Sunday, I just preached on the ascension of Jesus Christ.

And as I preached on the ascension, Jesus is fulfilling what He said, what we read earlier in John.

He said, I'm going to leave you. Now, if you had been living with Jesus, talking with Jesus, seeing the miracles of Jesus, now seeing the resurrected

Jesus, what do we typically want to do with our Jesus? It's mine.

Any Lord of the Rings fans here? Like, my ring, my precious. You know, this is my

Jesus. We want to protect it. It's my religion.

It's my Jesus. It's my relationship, and it's none of your business. Is that really glorifying? How does those early disciples react when they see

Jesus ascending there? He led them as far as to Bethany is the gospel of Luke wrote, and it's the only gospel that records details about the ascension of Jesus.

He led them as far as Bethany, and then He raises His hands, He blesses them, and they watch

Him fly off. How many of them do you see running after Him? Oh, Jesus, please don't leave.

You know how Luke records the response? It says, rejoicing and worshiping

Him with great joy, they returned back to Jerusalem. What's going on there?

Because the Son of God is leaving them, and yet they're worshiping and rejoicing.

I believe they're finally beginning to understand what Jesus had told them as John recorded, that it's going to be to your advantage that I leave.

Now head over back to Jerusalem because there's something good coming. They're finally believing that the Messiah is who

He said He was, that He's going to be crucified, and on the third day be risen again, and then He's going to ascend to the

Father. And I'm going to go to my Father, and I'm going to pray to my Father. I'm going to talk to my Father, and He's going to send something really special.

I think they're really believing Him. And as they believe Him, they suffer tremendously.

They get on through the day of Pentecost, and then we know persecution not long after this great awakening that happens there in Jerusalem.

The birth of the church happens. They're suffering tremendously. Chaos is happening, and they're being scattered, imprisoned, beaten, stoned.

What did they do as they were scattered? They continued to preach what? They continued to preach the gospel.

How did they persevere so well? How did they stand so strong in the faith? How did they just so willingly lay down their lives?

What was their attitude like? I so often wonder what my attitude would be like if I really had to suffer.

Well, in Acts chapter 9, verse 31, take a look at their attitude. So the church throughout all

Judea and Galilee and Samaria, this is in the mist historically.

If you read it, it's very clear. Under great persecution, I can insert that without adding or taking away.

You with me? So the church throughout all Judea, all Galilee, and all

Samaria had what? Peace. And as they had peace, they're doing what?

Being built up, and they're walking in the fear of the Lord. And what?

And in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. By that, the church multiplied.

Listen, I do believe in America, and I do believe in the world we're living in a chaotic system. I do believe that there's wickedness rampant all around us.

There's foolish things that are of the enemy and are against and contrary to the things of God.

But Church of Jesus Christ, listen to me. We can continue to live in peace and we can continue to live in joy and we continue to glorify

Christ. And why? Because we have the comfort of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us that come on me even if my life is laid down.

I am ready. I am secure. And even to the end, he is with me. Where's the church that walks in that comfort?

I see all these posts and all these things about all the fear of the church.

And I'm like, where? Where is the Holy Spirit? What happens is we begin to ignore the

Holy Spirit and begin to examine circumstances. Well, praise God, we have a

God that is far above and over all circumstances. Praise the Lord. We have a God who is sovereign.

And I don't believe there's one blade of grass that bends unless the Father is keenly and well aware of all those things.

And he loves us and cares for us and supplies all our needs according to his riches and glory.

We find rest and peace in him. So I want to end with this.

One of my favorite chapters of the Bible, and it probably is for a lot of Christians, is Romans chapter eight. So Dan let the cat out of the bag.

All right. So flip over there to Romans chapter eight to surmise this. I told you

I want you to leave this message empowered and clear minded that we should not ignore the

Holy Spirit. Now, how many of you can quote something? Don't look at your Bible. I'm going to test you here. How many of you can quote something from Romans chapter eight?

All right, Keith, give me a quote. Whatever first comes to your mind. Praise God.

Romans 8 .1. John. Amen.

Hallelujah. Somebody else. Yeah, girl, go on with it.

Can separate us from the love of God. This is one of the most quotable chapters in all the

Bible. Now take a glance at your Bible and maybe just popcorn it right quick.

Give me just a few more that some favorite things from there. There you go, boy.

What else we got? That's right. Amen. Yes. This thing, this chapter of the

Bible is chocked full of promises to the people of God. I mean, promise after promise after promise, identity after identity after identity.

This, this is who we are, what we're fixing to read. We're going to read the whole chapter and I'm going to preach it verse by verse for the next 12 hours.

Okay. So hang with me. Just kidding. Now, what I want you to do though, now that we've heard a few of these things,

I want you to tune in because the reality is when we start reading this, we read it with these huge concepts, but we ignore how many times the word spirit, the

Holy Spirit in this text, it's the Numa, the breath of God.

How many times it's mentioned in this? Let's read it together and pay attention. There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus for the law of the spirit, the

Numa, the breath of God, the breath of life has set you free.

So let's go back. We quoted for there and I'm glad he said it for therefore there is no condemnation for those that are in Christ, but why

Paul, Paul answers the question for the law of the spirit has set you free in Christ.

So you don't get verse one without verse two. You're tracking with me. Now I'll try not to do that every single time, but I want you to pay attention to that.

Connect the dots. You don't have the freedom of condemnation without the spirit of God bringing you freedom in Christ.

From the law of sin and death. Verse three, for God has done what the law weakened for what the law weakened by the flesh could not do by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh.

And for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the, so y 'all got to say that louder when

I would get to, you kind of feel me, right? Well, not according to the flesh, but walk according to the.

So in other words, the church of Jesus Christ should not be ignoring the Holy spirit should not be full of pragmatic strategic best life.

Now mess should not be caring about walking in the power of the flesh that is powerless, but we should be walking in the spirit for those who live according to the flesh sets their minds on the things of the flesh.

But those who live according to the spirit, they set their minds on the things of the spirit. How many churches are earthly minded, fleshly minded, or spiritually minded?

I'll leave it at that. But we set our minds on the spirit for to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the spirit is what life and peace.

How many of us need life and peace? Well, the reality is when you're lacking life and you're lacking peace and you're just over anguished with depression or whatever the circumstances are, the reality is you're the things of the flesh.

But God has promised us through his spirit, peace. And life, not peace, like the world gives you,

Jesus said, my peace or seven for the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law.

Indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But I like this, what's it say?

But you, writing right here to the church, you, however, are not in the flesh, but in the spirit.

If in fact, the spirit of God dwells in you, and I like how he gives a caveat there, right? If in fact, then you are.

Today, we need to examine that carefully. That is the work of regeneration and salvation, and only you can work that out with fear and trembling.

But if in fact, the spirit of God does dwell in you, then you are filled with life and filled with peace.

And anyone who does not have the spirit of Christ does not belong to him. Hear that clear warning.

If you don't have the spirit, then you don't have Christ. You don't belong to him.

But in the opposite side, if you have Christ, then good news church, then you've got the spirit to amen.

But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.

If the spirit of him who raised Christ from the dead dwells in you, who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you.

Now, good night. I could preach that like my hair's on fire, and then you'd show no, I'm a little bit bad because still you let your mind meditate on that just for a moment for Colossians reminds us that our sin with its legal demands was nailed to the cross.

He who knew no sin became sin and was nailed to the cross and blotted it out of the way.

And he was crushed under the wrath of God, under the mountain of sin and put in a tune.

You think about the glory and the power and the majesty that the same spirit that raised

Christ from the dead, the same spirit that peeled back the sin that was nailed upon him, the same spirit that dug him out of the grave, kicked the door open and gives us a resurrected

Christ. That same spirit that rose Jesus from the dead is the same spirit that lives inside of you and me.

Where's the powerless church? It should be not such a thing because took power, took glory and majesty to raise

Christ. And then God would take dead, rotten people like us,

Ephesians two, who were also dead in the trespasses of our sin. Oh, but God who's so rich in mercy by the life of Christ, by the power of the spirit, you too now have life filled with the same spirit that raised

Christ from the dead. Why would we ignore that? Why don't we celebrate that?

So then brothers, we're debtors. We owe God everything, don't we? Not to the flesh to live according to the flesh.

I don't owe any man anything, but I am a debtor. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die.

But by the spirit, you put the death of deeds of the body. You will live for all who are led by the spirit of God or what?

Sons of God. Can you say I'm a child of God today?

Come on, church. Can you say I'm a child of God today? Why would we ignore the

Holy Spirit that's ushered us in to be children of God? You did not receive this spirit of slavery to fall back into fear.

He's writing to you, church, why would you be born again and be filled with the spirit of God and then somehow just just fall back into fear, but you receive the spirit of adoption by which

I cry out, Abba, my father, I have a father now. I was I was an orphan.

I was I was a slave. I was under condemnation. I was an undone wicked man.

But my father came and said, I'm going to make you my son. I'm going to fill you with my spirit.

And I'm adopting you into my family that now you're not only heirs, but you're co -heirs with Christ.

How does he do that? By the work of his spirit. And even though we suffer with him, we praise

God because we glorified with him. For then I consider the sufferings of this present time are not worth even comparing to the glory.

We can't even compare it. It's worth it all when we suffer for the cause of Christ.

Why? Because what a joy it is. I used to think it was crazy to think about Peter and John going back to Acts chapter four as they were leaving the temple.

They were rejoicing that they just got beat. And they counted it glory to suffer for the cause of Christ in a like manner as him, as Americans were so accustomed to our comforts that we desire and reach and strive for material comfort, all the while ignoring real comfort, which only comes through the comforter.

For I consider the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that revealed us for creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God, with creation subjected to futility, not willing, but because of him who subjected it in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to the corruption and obtain freedom of the glory of the children of God.

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning. Together and pains and birth pains until now, and not only creation, but we ourselves who had the first fruits of the spirit.

We also have this first fruit. So in other words, it's not a finished work yet. Amen. Praise the Lord. We've got this first fruit.

We've got this deposit guaranteeing our future. We grown in early as well as we eagerly for the adoption, the redemption of our bodies.

In other words, the glorification that is to come for in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope for who hopes for what he sees.

But if we hope for what we do not see, so we wait for it with patience. Likewise, the spirit helps us in our weakness.

As we're waiting, we're going to come in patient. We're going to become weak and we're going to struggle. Why? Because there's still a battle with the flesh.

Paul's ignore not ignoring that he's acknowledging that. And in our weakness, the spirit of God helps us.

Can you think of a better helper, by the way? Isn't Paul just echoing what Jesus has already wrote?

That you got to help her stop being afraid. Likewise, the spirit helps us in our infirmities and our weakness.

And even to the point when you don't know what to pray. When you don't even know what to pray.

Praise God, we got a helper says that the spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

How you think that prayer is going to be answered? Yes, no, maybe wait. When God talks to God, and I'm pretty sure we're going to get a godly answer.

Amen. How that works, I have no idea. But that's what it says that when you yourself don't even know how to pray that the

Holy Spirit knows how to intercede on your behalf to petition the Father for exactly what you need.

And when the spirit of God petitions the Father, God, guess what happens?

You're going to get everything you need. He helps us. He intercedes for us, according to the will of God, which will always be answered in the affirmative.

And we know those that who love God, all things work together for the good. For those who are called according to your purposes.

For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, in order that we might be the firstborn among many brothers.

And those who predestined, he also called, and those whom he called, he also justified, and those whom he justified, he also glorified.

So now Paul said some tremendous things here. He says, what shall we say to these things?

Say it brother, if God is for us, who could be against us?

We hope today to begin a series of messages and training and equipping you, that you will realize

Church of Jesus Christ, God is for you. There's a lot of stuff that's against you.

But God is for you. There's a lot of stuff that we see with our eyes that is great and grand in our perspective.

But God has just told you about who he is in you and for you.

So then if God is for you, what is there to be against him?

Who could dare compare to the glory of our God? Who could dare approach his throne except those redeemed by the blood of the

Lamb? Who would dare petition him and be heard unless there's been reconciliation with him?

Who could dare even talk to him? And we say, oh, well, Satan and Jesus, you know, they're like in this arm wrestling match.

No, I'll tell you this. And I heard, I think it was Paul Washer that said this, that it is like a gnat trying to take on a block of granite is how much impact the enemy would have on the work of God.

There is no arm wrestling match. There is no struggle. There is no battle for him. There is nothing that is too hard for him.

There is nothing that is impossible for him. He's with us.

And how do we know that he's with us? If he did not spare his own son, if he did not spare his own most precious son.

To save us. How will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

That's really logical, by the way. That's really logical for those that are in the faith.

This should be making light bulbs go off and think how silly I've been to wallow in my fear when

I have a God who's for me and gave his son for me and has empowered me and has filled me with his spirit, the same spirit that raised

Christ from the dead. How foolish is it me to look at the world and be afraid when I should be going like a sharp sword, bold and courageous, the light to dispel the darkness.

So what we know is. Who should bring a charge against God's elect? Who would dare?

Nobody. For he saved us. I put in here a side note of Titus chapter three, verse five. He saved us not because of works done by righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing and the regeneration and the renewal of the

Holy Spirit. Who is to condemn then? Christ, Jesus is the one who died more than that, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution, famine, nakedness, danger or sword, political strife, crazy

Americans, civil war, Middle Eastern war, poverty, what's going to separate us from the love of Christ, whatever you want to insert in there?

No, in all things. All things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

I pray that we'll be raising up a conquering generation. For we are more than conquerors.

And here Paul says, I am so sure he said, I am persuaded, I am absolutely convinced that neither death or life or angels or rulers or things present or things to come nor height or depth or anything else.

And all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. How does he hold that?

How does he hold that in such confidence? How does he know that? Well, then you go back to the first of the chapter and read it again.

And you're going to find that this life and the spirit gives us this confidence that God is with us and God is for us.

And we're not alone in this. Jesus told his disciples, I'm going to leave you, but I'm not going to leave you an orphan, that I'm going to come to you.

And how is he going to come to you? I'm going to come to you through my spirit. He told him, he said, I'm going to send you to the world.

You're going to all the world to make disciples. He said, but don't be afraid. Why? Because I'm with you to the end. How is he with them all the way to the end?

How is he going to make a promise that I'm never going to leave you nor forsake you? It's by his promise of the

Holy Spirit. All of these things tie back together that the spirit of God, the promise of God, the gift of God is what is ushering in the kingdom of God through the people of God.

And we should have a great confidence in talking about the

Holy Spirit, we should have a great admiration and thankfulness to a holy

God who would come and dwell with us by his spirit and not like the early disciples before Pentecost, where he was dwelling among them, because I believe he is dwelling among us, but he's also what he is dwelling in us.

Wrap your mind around that, that the very God who spoke things into existence now dwells within you.

No wonder there's such a confidence in Paul's writing that's like, well, if this God is in me, then what else do

I need? If this God is in me, what else is there to be afraid? Let infirmity come, let shipwreck come, let stoning come, let beatings come.

Praise God. That can't be changed because he's in me. Sorry if I'm getting loud, but I'm a little passionate about this.

Flip over to Romans chapter 14, verse 17, and we close. As we stop ignoring the

Holy Spirit, we're going to begin to realize that the kingdom of God is not materialism.

The kingdom of God is spiritual. I really believe that in closing, the reason we ignore the spirit of God is because the spirit of God has really no interest in giving you a fulfilled life with materials of this world.

I'm thankful if we do, if he chooses to bless us with something or he doesn't, all we're guaranteed is our needs are met, right?

Our needs are met to accomplish his will and accomplish his ministry. But folks, this is not my home.

We're just sojourners passing through. So what is this kingdom of God that we walk in?

I quoted it to our brothers this morning as I got up. I've been up since 4 a .m. this morning, just juiced, okay?

So that's why I'm rattling on and on and on. Romans chapter 14, verse 17 says this, for the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking.

He said, listen, the kingdom of God is not about getting your belly full, having a roof over your head, get nice clothes on your back, get your best life now.

That's not the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is righteousness and peace and joy in the

Holy Spirit. That's what we have, church.

So repeat after me. Only if you're in Christ, I am righteous,

I have peace, and I have joy in the

Holy Spirit. Now, can you say that with conviction or are you just repeating after me?

That's the convicting part of my life today, that I was up early and repenting because I let so many foolish things rob me of my peace and my joy.

I'm thankful that my righteousness is secure in Christ. I get my eyes on so many foolish things that my peace and my joy sometimes just gets a little tarnished.

I don't have a song on my heart. I don't have just a confidence and a peace walking through my day.

The Spirit of God reminded me this morning because my eyes get fixed on fleshly things.

I take my eyes off of flesh, repent of that, and be reminded what's already given.

Today I'm not inviting you to get more. I often illustrate it like with this cup.

This cup is filled with two things right now, a little bit of coffee and a lot of air, and they both can't occupy the same space at the same time.

And when my eyes are filled with flesh and my heart is filled with the things of flesh, it's a lot like air. But I like a good cup of coffee.

Do y 'all like coffee? I love a good cup of coffee. Here in a minute we'll have coffee break.

You're like, praise God, I wish you'd be quiet. Here in a minute we're gonna have some coffee. I go in there and put me some coffee in there and as that coffee fills up this cup, man, it's warm, it's so good and bitter.

I drink in my black, but that air has to leave.

And it's filled with the goodness of that coffee. No wonder

Paul says, don't be drunk with wine, but be you filled with the Holy Spirit. We should empty ourselves of flesh and fill ourselves with the truth of God's Word, which has told us already that we have everything we need in Christ and we are already given the

Holy Spirit. Now empty yourself of flesh and be filled with the truth of God.

Be filled with the Spirit of God. And church, when you're filled with the Spirit of God, you'll glorify

God and you'll say, man, how could I have ever ignored the

Holy Spirit? By the grace of God, may we never ignore the

Holy Spirit again. Amen. Let's pray together. Father, thank you so much for your

Word. Thank you so much for the truth of it, the beauty of it, the promises that you've given us, that you've never broken one.

And I pray that in the days ahead, these things will permeate our lives and we'll recognize the hope that we have in you and in you alone.

I pray that today by your grace you would grant us a genuine repentance, a genuine change of mind and a change of heart to turn from setting our eyes so much on the things of the earth.

And that we would set our eyes upon you, O Lord. That we would not walk in accordance to the flesh, which only brings death and hostility.

That we'd walk in the Spirit, which is life and peace. I pray,

Father, that you would just do a work in us. And Holy Spirit, I pray that you would forgive us where we have quenched you and grieved you.

We've ignored you. I pray that you would do a work in us that is so deep today that we would never again ignore you, but be fully reliant upon you in all aspects of ministry, all aspects of life.

May we fully be reliant upon you, because our greatest desire is to glorify you,

Christ. And we can't do that without your help,

Holy Spirit. So take the rest of this conference,

Christ, and be glorified by the work of the Holy Spirit in your church. Be glorified,

Christ, by every man that preaches here, every song that's sung, every minute of fellowship, every single thing that's done.

Christ, may you be glorified. And not because it's the actions of men, the actions of flesh.

May you be glorified, because you, oh Holy Spirit, are working through fallible people, but yet fallible people redeemed and reconciled by the blood of the

Lamb. Thank you for this today, Lord. Thank you for your word. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. Conviction.

Conviction leads to repentance, and repentance leads to healing. I can't speak for you guys, but the

Holy Spirit has been convicting and healing already in me.

So, excuse me.

We'll give Dr. Michael Schultz a moment to tell you about his seminary and what's going on there.