“Understanding the Holy Spirit part 5”

(How to hear from the Holy Spirit part 3)

July 31, 2005.  Pastor Matt

Intro

John 16:13.  But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

The Holy Spirit speaks to us.  That is what we have been talking about. 

He speaks to us through...

-         absence/ presence of peace

-         our conscience, to convict us away from sin and convicts us towards a life of righteousness.

The Holy Spirit speaks through the Word of God

How is that possible?

1.     The Holy Spirit wrote it, not man.

2 Peter 1:12-21   

12.  So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. 

-         they already have the truth but Peter wants to keep reminding them of it

13.  I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body,

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-         Peter understood the importance of keeping the Words of the Lord fresh in our minds

  14.  because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.  15.  And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.  16.  We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.  17.  For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."  18.  We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.

-         He is reminding them that the Gospel of Jesus is real and true because they were there to experience some amazing things

 19.  And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

-         It’s also true because they have the Scriptures that tell them Jesus is who He sys He was

-         why do they know the Scriptures are true?

  20.  Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation.  21.  For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 

The Bible is not some man-made story-book.  It is the thoughts of God/ the Holy Spirit written on paper.

More proof:

2 Timothy 3: 16-17. 

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

(KJV)All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right.  It is God’s way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do.

God-breathed: Given by inspiration of God.  Literally “breathed into by God”

God spoke/wrote through human personalities to say exactly what He wanted them to say.  Their words are from God’s mouth, His breath.

Because the words we have in our Bible are the thoughts of God written down, we have no easier way to hear from the Holy Spirit than to listen to Him from the pages of our Bible.

Life is confusing enough as it is. 

Sometimes we need the scriptures to spell things out for us black and white. 

(Do you think you understand you spouse?  Sometimes as guys we need things spelled out for us)

The more you spend time talking to God, the better you are able to hear his voice. 

2.     Jesus is in it.  Because Jesus is in it, everything in it is the Truth.

John 1:1-5-30

 1.  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2.  He was with God in the beginning.  3.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  4.  In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

 5.  The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood  it.   

14.  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  15.  John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, `He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'"

29.  The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 

 30.  This is the one I meant when I said, `A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'

-         Someone called the Word was in the beginning

-         This Person was with God when He created the World

-         This Person is part of God

-         This person is referred to as the Light shining in darkness

-         This person was Jesus

-         Jesus is the Words we have written on this paper

-         Jesus is Truth and His words are truth

John 14:6.  Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 18: 37-38.  "You are a king, then!" said Pilate.   Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."  "What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, "I find no basis for a charge against him.

3.     The Word of God will change you life

Isaiah 55: 11.  so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

I dare you to read it.  You cannot help but be effected by the Word when you read it.

When you put the word in you, you are putting Jesus in you. 

Galatians 6:7b.  A man reaps what he sows.   

Examples: 

o       My friend Clay when he would listen to Guns and Roses, his mom said it made him more aggressive and hateful.   

o       My kids’ behavior in the car was altered by the music we were listening to.

o       The behavior of the kids at school often will be determined by the bus drivers’ behavior.

Some of you have done everything but read your Bibles. 

-         You watch TV preachers, you read the latest books and go to the latest concerts, but your personal bible stays closed. 

-         Everything else is subjective compared to actually reading it for yourselves. 

-         Why would you have a conversation with someone only if you are going to pass it through another human first

God wants a personal relationship with you.  He wants to speak to you.

The second part of this morning’s message, I am going to give you some practicle suggestion that will help you when you read your Bible:

 Suggestions to help you read you bible

A. Look for the simple meaning. 

-         If you get one thing out of the passage what would it be?

-         God speaks in major themes.  He does not speak in hidden meanings. 

o       It is ok to say, I don’t understand what He is trying to say instead of pushing ahead and making yourself understand something, even if you are wrong. 

§        When you get to heaven He’ll explain things to you. 

1        Corinthians 13:12.  Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

B. Read it in context.

-         Read what comes before and after it.

-         Does it say it anywhere else in the Bible?

o       If it is not does not, than you are standing on an unstable belief. 

§        The most common/stable teaching in the bible is Jesus/Savior/Messiah).

-         What did it mean to the original audience and that is what it means to you.

o       The Holy Spirit will never lead you where the Word of God forbids you to go.

§        If you think the passage is telling you one thing, but other parts of the bible contradict it, then you have misunderstood the passage. 

·        There will never be a part of the Bible where you can say, "But that does not apply to me." 

C. Read it even when you don’t feel like it. 

-         It is all about building your relationship with God.

-         What you read now is being stored up for later times when you will need it to make a big decision in a critical time, or to help you through a time of crisis. 

o       Later is not a good time to play catch up. 

o       If your pastor did not spend time in the Word, he would not be able to help you when you come to him with questions about life. 

-         In a relationship, God will speak to us through the right passage at the right time just when we need it.  Why?  Because we are in relationship with him.

- A person who consistantly spends time in the Word is like... Psalms 1:1-3.  (tree planted by water) or Matthew 7:24-25 (house on the rock)

D. Use your resources all around you. 

-         Internet, your pastor, the library, etc. 

-         If your cousin passed away and left you a pile of money, but in order for you to receive it, you had to fill out some complicated paperwork exactly right, you’d figure it out.

-         When people say they don’t understand it usually, they are really saying it is not important enough to make any efforts to figure it out. 

-         The problem is not education as much as it is motivation. 

-         They might say, “why do I need to know that? And then walk away from it. 

-         The sad thing is that the Bible is filed with treasures beyond what the world can offer.

E. Read a translation you understand. 

-         You cannot learn what you cannot understand. 

     §  There were already at least 9 different translations prior to KJV 1611

§        1384 was the first Bible written (the KJV was not the first)

§        How the KJV was written: 47 authors used other Bibles along side the original Hebrew & Greek

§        The KJV went through several editions and revisions.  1629, 1632, 1638, 1657, 1762, 1769. (no one currently reads the original version)

§        Their intent was to put a readable Bible into the hands of English speaking people of the churches in England

§        In that same interest many more Bibles have been written today

§        Do you understand the language of 350 years ago?

-         Read more than one translation.

F. Write it down. 

-         As it makes sense to you, as you learn it, write it down for future reference. 

-         It will help you remember. 

-         Tell someone about it.  Share it with them.

G. Don’t read it with an agenda. 

-         If you look for it to mean something specific, you’ll often make it mean that in your own mind. 

-         If you are too emotional involved in something, it may be a good idea to seek out the honest and objective opinion of a man or woman of God you trust.

-         Remember that God’s Words are Truth.  We just need to understand what He already said

Closing

Psalm 119:105.

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

-         Feet and path designate motion, direction/ movement. 

-         The Holy Spirit is our guide in our Christian life.

-         Without the word, we are in darkness.  (as in the dark ages) 

What it says is true, so follow through. 

Need light for your paths?  Turn on the flashlight.