Led By the Spirit
Griffith Baptist Church – 6/1/08
A.M. Service
Text: Romans 8:12-14
Key verse: Romans 8:14 - For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
The Introduction
A lady went to a jeweler to have her watch fixed. He disappeared to the back and soon returned with it running perfectly. Surprised, she asked how he could fix it so soon. He told her it only needed a new battery. Battery? Nobody said anything about a battery. I’ve been winding it every morning!" --A lot of Christians do not realize the inner power of the Holy Spirit to handle things they think they must take into their own hands. - For as many as are led by the Spirit of God
We come to a new “therefore” in verse 12, so we need to look back to the preceding 11 verses.
1. The prominent word is the word “debtors” (12)
2. The act of binding oneself by a social, legal, or moral tie. Opheiletēs (ὀφειλέτης) - one who owes another, a debtor a) one held by some obligation, bound by some duty
3. This is an inescapable debt that can only be paid by a legitimate outside source, Jesus Christ.
4. Notice what has led to this point.
o Verses 2-3 – the law was insufficient to save
o Verse 5 – fleshly people pursue fleshly desires (set their minds)
o Verse 6 – fleshly minds bring death, ultimate and unending
o Verses 7-8 – fleshly minds are antagonistic and disobedient against God
o Verse 9 – flesh controlled people are not saved.
5. On the positive end, those who are truly in Christ and born of the Spirit are:
o Not condemned (1)
o Set free (2)
o Able to fix our minds on the Spirit (6)
o Spiritual life (10)
o New life now and the promise of the life to come (11)
To mind the things of the flesh is to be predominantly controlled by the flesh and to mind the things of the Spirit is to be predominately controlled by the Spirit.
1. According to the Word of God, what leads you is what you are a servant of
2. What you are a servant of is that to which you belong
3. Romans 6:17-23 - 17But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 19I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 21What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 22But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Transition Statement: What does it mean to be led by the Spirit?
Body
1. A New Leader (12)
A. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
i. S. I. McMillen, in his book "None of These Diseases," tells a story of a young woman who wanted to go to college, but her heart sank when she read the question on the application blank that asked, "Are you a leader?" Being both honest and conscientious, she wrote, "No," and returned the application, expecting the worst. To her surprise, she received this letter from the college: "Dear Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that this year our college will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because we feel it is imperative that they have at least one follower."
ii. Being led by the Spirit does not refer here to service, nor to guidance in particular paths. It refers to the general control by the Holy Spirit of those born of the Holy Spirit, living by the Spirit, in the Spirit.
iii. Are you trying to lead the Spirit?
iv. Is your all on the altar of sacrifice laid?
Your heart does the Spirit control?
You can only be blest,
And have peace and sweet rest,
As you yield Him your body and soul.
v. The Holy Spirit should be the one leading us in all things
vi. If we no longer have a legal obligation to the flesh, than that means that we have a legal obligation to something else, or someone else, namely, the Spirit (capital S)
vii. The flesh is the repulsive nature of the inner man that leads us away from God and is appealed to by sin
viii. Read Galatians 5:17-25
B. Look at what the Holy Spirit does in the believers life:
i. He regenerates the believer (Jn. 3:3-5; Titus 3:5)
ii. He indwells the believer - 1 Corinthians 6:19 - your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost who is in you
iii. He seals the believer – these verses indicate ownership and likeness - Ephesians 1:13-14 - after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
iv. He fills the believer – Acts 2:4 - And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, . . . (this can be repeated as opposed to indwelling which is once for all time, compare Acts 2:4 with 4:31)
v. He empowers the believer for service – Romans 8:2 - For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
vi. He guides the believer – (Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:16, 25)
vii. He anoints the believer
a. Knowledge and teaching – 1 John 2:27 -
b. Service – 1 Samuel 16:13 -
c. Consecration – means to be separated to or belonging to God – It is connected with sanctification (being made holy resulting in a changed life). – 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 - 3For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: 4That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; 5Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: 6That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. 7For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. 8He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.
C. God has given us the Holy Spirit to lead us and be dependent upon Him to guide us.
D. If we are not allowing the Holy Spirit full access to our lives, we cannot walk with God
E. We need to open our ears, eyes, minds and hearts.
F. Anything less that the Spirit leading us is sin.
G. Advice for being led by the Spirit:
i. If your really saved, you will want the Spirit’s leading
ii. Submission to what God says in all things
iii. Prayer for the Spirit’s filling and leading
iv. Stop questioning God and trying to be the guide. Do what He says
Transition Statement: Not only do we have a new leader but we have a new life.
2. A New Life (13)
A. . . . but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
i. A parable is told of a community of ducks waddling off to duck church one Sunday to hear their duck preacher. After they waddled into the duck sanctuary, the service began and the duck preacher spoke eloquently of how God had given the ducks wings with which to fly. He pounded the pulpit with his beak and said, With these wings, there is nowhere we ducks can not go! There is no God-given task we ducks cannot accomplish! With these wings we no longer need walk through life. We can soar high in the sky! Shouts of Amen!¨ were quacked throughout the duck congregation. The duck preacher concluded his message by exclaiming, With our wings we can fly through life! WE......CAN.....FLY!!!!¨ More ducks quacked out loud AMENS! in response. Every duck loved the service. In fact all the ducks that were present commented on what a wonderfully convicting message they had heard from their duck preacher.... and then they left the church and waddled all the way home. APPLICATION Too often We waddle away from worship the same way we waddled in.... Unchanged.
ii. We are to live above the world and the flesh
iii. It is evidence of our salvation
iv. To put death (mortify) θανατόω [thanatoō] - to make to die i.e. destroy, render extinct, by death to be liberated from the bond of anything, literally to be made dead in relation to (something)
v. Titus 2:12 – Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
B. Signs of the new Life mean this:
i. A distinctive change - 2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
ii. A teachable spirit – Ezekiel 11:19-20 – 19And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: 20That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
iii. A fruitful testimony - Matthew 12:33 – Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.
iv. An obedient faith - Ephesians 2:10 - For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Transition Statement: We have a new leader, a new life and last but not least, a new lineage, a new family line.
3. A New Lineage (14)
A. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
i. One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around in some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, “Hey Dad! Catch me!” I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and then yelled “Hey Dad!” I became an instant circus act, catching him. We both fell to the ground. For a moment after I caught him I could hardly talk. When I found my voice again I gasped in exasperation: “Zac! Can you give me one good reason why you did that"??”
He responded with remarkable calmness: “Sure...because you’re my Dad.” His whole assurance was based in the fact that his father was trustworthy. He could live life to the hilt because I could be trusted. Isn’t this even more true for a Christian?
Holy Sweat, Tim Hansel, 1987, Word Books Publisher, pp. 46-47.
ii. To be called Children of God
iii. This puts us in a godly line
iv. This should also give us a godly testimony
v. His children should bear a strong and striking resemblance to their Father
vi. Where there is no evidence there is no salvation
vii. NOTE: The heavenly family trumps our earthly families. Families, strong families are vital in the church and in our lives, but that only concerns earth. We will not know each other as husband, wife, children and so forth when we get to heaven – Matthew 22:30 - For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.
B. What does this lineage mean?
i. Being led by the Spirit does not refer here to service, nor to guidance in particular paths. It refers to the general control by the Holy Spirit of those born of the Holy Spirit, living by the Spirit, in the Spirit.
ii. Are you trying to lead the Spirit?
iii. Is your all on the altar of sacrifice laid?
Your heart does the Spirit control?
You can only be blest,
And have peace and sweet rest,
As you yield Him your body and soul.
iv. That we are more concerned with the Father’s will than our own - Psalms 143:10 – Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.
a. To teach is to train someone to do something
b. We need to be ever learning and applying so we are growing to be doing
c. We need to be growing toward Christ every day.
d. That is the design of God for your life as His child.
e. Have you asked God to teach you to do His will or to let you have your will?
f. It is one thing to have the Holy Spirit, but does the Spirit have you?
v. That we should have a closer relationship with God the Father - Galatians 4:6 – And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father
a. Abba has a closer meaning, something like our modern day “daddy.”
b. This is a most intimate name and relationship
Concluding Statement: To be led by the Spirit of God means we submit to His leadership, walk with Him saying goodbye to the old life and embracing the new life, and understand that as God’s children we have a relationship that should every moment, be close. Can you say, in all honesty, that the Spirit has 100% control of your life?
Conclusion:
Have you surrendered your life to being led by the Spirit of the living God?
What are your holding back?
Do you fully expect to walk half-heartedly through your life and expect God to be pleased when you stand before His judgment seat?
