Message 6: A Believing Will
INTRODUCTION:
We’ve looked at faith, identity and believe. I thought that it was time to move to the 4th word, but the Lord spoke and said – “Not so fast.”
• I was feeling kind of tired and a little down the other day – no reason that I can really identity, but I knew that I needed to get alone with God.
• I didn’t FEEL like being with God. But I went to be with Him. Initially if sort of felt like going to the dentist.
• But I knew I needed fellowship with Him. So I made a choice of the will.
• As I was praying – I found myself saying: “I will worship you. I will love you. I will find my strength in you… I will… I will… I will…” – and the more “I will” statements that I made, the closer I FELT to God and the more I enjoyed being with Him.
• And then God spoke to me and said: Choosing to say “I will” is an important ACTION STEP of believers. Teach your people about the importance of having a SPIRIT-FILLED WILL.”
• And so today – here we are – camped out on the word “BELIEVE” and we are going to see how our WILL impacts our ability to BELIEVE.
The fact that we are BELIEVERS – impacts every area of our being – our spirits, our bodies, our intellect, our emotions and our will!
And today, I want to talk about how being a SPIRIT-BAPTIZED BELIEVER impacts our WILL.
The baptism of the Holy Spirit enables God’s Spirit to invade every aspect of your life. When you submit your spirit to God’s Spirit, He moves in and immediately begins an extreme makeover of our spirit, body and soul.
We frequently dismiss our will as being evil, bad and we think that the only thing to do with the will is to submit it to God’s will. “Not my will, but yours be done…” – And that is certainly a valid thing.
But what happens to the will of man when we are BAPTIZED in the Holy Spirit? Isn’t the purpose of the baptism of the Holy Spirit to bring renewal and new life to us? Isn’t the baptism of the Holy Spirit simply allowing the Spirit of God to reclaim what was lost to Him in the fall of man?
So – what happens to the WILL of man when it has been reclaimed to God by the baptism of the Holy Spirit? Let’s start with the basics:
1. The Spirit-Filled Will knows the WILL OF GOD and chooses to live in it.
“Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:15-18
• Do you understand what the Lord’s will is!
• What is God up to?
• What does His Word reveal about His will?
• In the midst of life’s circumstances – what is God’s will in the moment?
One thing is for sure – it is God’s will that you be RESTORED TO HIS ORIGINAL DESIGN!
1 Peter 5:10 in the Message Translation says:
“The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ - eternal and glorious plans they are! - will have you put together and on your feet for good.” 1 Peter 5:10 Message
Since this is God’s will – that you be fully restored – we make a choice of the will, to know God’s will and to live in it! We pursue knowledge of God’s will and we pursue experiencing God’s will!
Back to Ephesians 5 – Paul says: “understand what the Lord’s will is… be filled with the Spirit!”
You cannot walk in the will of God – you will never make the willful choices to allow God’s will to be preeminent in your life, unless you are filled – baptized – overwhelmed with the Holy Spirit!
The soulish will seeks self over God every time – or a religious soulish will seeks to manipulate God with attempts at bargaining: “I will do this, if you’ll do that…”
The Spirit filled will simply seeks to know God’s will and chooses to live in it.
Here’s one test to see if you are walking in the power of the Holy Spirit: In the midst of everyday life, I am increasingly asking questions like – “What is God up to?” or “Since God is doing this, how can I cooperate with Him in accomplishing His will?”
Let’s move on…
2. The Spirit-Filled Will does not allow EMOTIONS and REASON to dominate.
Have you ever had a really difficult day? Filled with discouragement? Filled with desires that are clearly at odds with God’s will? Some of us go shopping on this day – we want to feel good, so we buy something. Some of us surf the internet looking for porn on these days – we want to feel good, so we seek sexual satisfaction. We can feed our emotions with lots of choices.
• Somebody cuts us off on the freeway – and we scream at them and give them the bird.
• Somebody at work is moving ahead of us, so we criticize them to our co-workers, seeking to make ourselves feel better.
But a Spirit-filled and empowered person makes a willful choice to not allow their EMOTIONS and FEELINGS dominate and run the show.
Proverbs 29:11 says:
“A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.” Proverbs 29:11
Keeping our selves under control is a choice of the will.
The Spirit-Filled Will chooses to see emotions for what they are – things that need to be brought under the Lordship of Christ.
Another one of the great battles we face occurs between our ears – the soulish will demands answers to all of it’s questions. Before we can take action steps, we expect God to tell us how everything is going to work out. Before I accept Christ, I want to have all the answers. Before I tithe, I want to KNOW that God will make it up. The soulish will demands answers and guarantees.
Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 10…
“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5
• The Spirit-Filled Will responds to any thought, any argument, any concept that goes against God in one way: It takes that thought captive and requires it to be submitted to Christ!
• The Spirit-Filled Will says to any thought that is contrary to TRUTH: “No! I will not believe nor even entertain that thought! I choose to believe Christ at His word, regardless!”
Finally…
3. The Spirit-Filled Will is a CONDUIT for renewing the mind and for discovering emotional well-being through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Let’s face it, the restoration process in our lives has a long way to go. And when you are baptized in the Holy Spirit, and when you are walking in a Spirit-Filled Will – God uses your will to be a conduit, a pipeline, a channel for the continuation of His renewal process.
For instance, the Spirit-Filled Will enables God to renew your soul. Jeremiah 15:16 says…
“When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s (SOUL) delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.” Jeremiah 15:16, NIV.
Listen to that same text in the Good News Translation:
“You spoke to me, and I listened to every word. I belong to you, Lord God Almighty, and so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness.” Jeremiah 15:16 Good News Translation (GNT)
Let’s take that verse apart, line by line:
• “You spoke to me…” – This is the gift of faith.
• “and I listened to every word…” – This is the response of a Spirit-Filled Will.
• “I belong to You, Lord God Almighty…” – This is the new IDENTITY that comes with the gift of Faith!
• “and so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness.” – The word ‘heart’ is one of the words used for SOUL. And the result of receiving His word is joy and happiness that is not based upon temporal circumstances.
When you willfully choose to listen to God, to claim your new identity, to receive His words into your soul, you are transformed, you are being renewed. Your Spirit-Filled Will serves a conduit for this transformation.
Paul wrote:
“My inner being delights in the law of God.” Romans 7:22 GNT
Again, - the word ‘inner being’ refers to the soul. Paul is saying in the midst of Romans 7 as he acknowledges his continual struggle with sin and failure, that at the very core of who he really is – his true IDENTITY, his soul delights in God’s ways!
Psalms 37 speaks to this:
“Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him…” Psalms 37:4-7, NIV.
This is a choice – the choice of the Spirit-filled will. Make God your passion, your desire, your hunger. The object of your affections – and He will come through.
So - HOW DOES THIS WORK?
1. First of all, it won’t unless you are baptized in the Holy Spirit. You can be a Christian for decades and not be baptized in the Holy Spirit. And the result is that you are living a soulish Christianity. And you probably don’t have much joy. You probably struggle way more than you need to.
God didn’t design you to be a soulish Christian.
He gives His Holy Spirit to all who will finally come to the end of their self and surrender to His power.
ASK for God to overwhelm every part of you. You’ve already invited Christ to be your Savior, and He has become that. Now, invite Him to invade your space. Stop holding Him at a nice, comfortable distance, allow Him unhindered access.
So go ahead and ASK Jesus to baptize you in the Holy Spirit.
“Heavenly Father, I thank You that I am under the protection of the precious blood of Jesus which has cleansed me from all sin. Dear Lord Jesus, please baptize me in the Holy Spirit and let me praise You with whatever expressions you give me. Thank You, Lord; I believe that You’re doing this right now! In Jesus’ Name, I pray…”
BELIEVE you receive the moment you ask.
“Ask and you shall receive that your joy may be full.” John 16:24
CONFESS with your lips the praises of God!
Begin right now to praise and acknowledge what God has done for you – use whatever words He gives you! Speak! Don’t be silent! Worship! Bless! Praise!
2. Once you’ve been baptized in the Holy Spirit, start making Spirit-Filled Willful statements.
Look at the list of statements I’ve suggested:
• When facing a time when you feeling arrogant: “I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders.” Psalms 9:1
• When your emotions say ‘serve me’ you say: “I am your servant; give me understanding, so that I may know your decrees.” Psalms 119:125 NRSV
• When it’s all about you: “I will magnify the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,” Luke 1:46, 47, NIV.
• When bitterness and grudges come: “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Jeremiah 31:34
• When I want my own way: “…not my will, but yours be done.” Luke 22:42
• When I want to be in control: “I will trust in You.” Psalms 55:23 KJV
• When I want to have a pity-party: “I will be glad in the LORD.” Psalms 104:34 NRSV
• When I lack peace: I will “Seek peace and pursue it.” Psalms 34:14
• When I want to give up: I “will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” Romans 14:4
• When I want to isolate: “I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.” Psalms 122:1, NIV.
These are just illustrations of the statements that the SPIRIT-FILLED WILL makes. We need to SPEAK these statements – to God, to our out-of-control emotions, to our needy intellect, to our flesh that wants feeding – so that the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT can be tapped into and you can move forward as a person of God!
Christ is calling us as His beloved children to BELIEVE HIM to empower us to live according the the power of the Holy Spirit!
We’ve looked at faith, identity and believe. I thought that it was time to move to the 4th word, but the Lord spoke and said – “Not so fast.”
• I was feeling kind of tired and a little down the other day – no reason that I can really identity, but I knew that I needed to get alone with God.
• I didn’t FEEL like being with God. But I went to be with Him. Initially if sort of felt like going to the dentist.
• But I knew I needed fellowship with Him. So I made a choice of the will.
• As I was praying – I found myself saying: “I will worship you. I will love you. I will find my strength in you… I will… I will… I will…” – and the more “I will” statements that I made, the closer I FELT to God and the more I enjoyed being with Him.
• And then God spoke to me and said: Choosing to say “I will” is an important ACTION STEP of believers. Teach your people about the importance of having a SPIRIT-FILLED WILL.”
• And so today – here we are – camped out on the word “BELIEVE” and we are going to see how our WILL impacts our ability to BELIEVE.
The fact that we are BELIEVERS – impacts every area of our being – our spirits, our bodies, our intellect, our emotions and our will!
And today, I want to talk about how being a SPIRIT-BAPTIZED BELIEVER impacts our WILL.
The baptism of the Holy Spirit enables God’s Spirit to invade every aspect of your life. When you submit your spirit to God’s Spirit, He moves in and immediately begins an extreme makeover of our spirit, body and soul.
We frequently dismiss our will as being evil, bad and we think that the only thing to do with the will is to submit it to God’s will. “Not my will, but yours be done…” – And that is certainly a valid thing.
But what happens to the will of man when we are BAPTIZED in the Holy Spirit? Isn’t the purpose of the baptism of the Holy Spirit to bring renewal and new life to us? Isn’t the baptism of the Holy Spirit simply allowing the Spirit of God to reclaim what was lost to Him in the fall of man?
So – what happens to the WILL of man when it has been reclaimed to God by the baptism of the Holy Spirit? Let’s start with the basics:
1. The Spirit-Filled Will knows the WILL OF GOD and chooses to live in it.
“Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:15-18
• Do you understand what the Lord’s will is!
• What is God up to?
• What does His Word reveal about His will?
• In the midst of life’s circumstances – what is God’s will in the moment?
One thing is for sure – it is God’s will that you be RESTORED TO HIS ORIGINAL DESIGN!
1 Peter 5:10 in the Message Translation says:
“The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ - eternal and glorious plans they are! - will have you put together and on your feet for good.” 1 Peter 5:10 Message
Since this is God’s will – that you be fully restored – we make a choice of the will, to know God’s will and to live in it! We pursue knowledge of God’s will and we pursue experiencing God’s will!
Back to Ephesians 5 – Paul says: “understand what the Lord’s will is… be filled with the Spirit!”
You cannot walk in the will of God – you will never make the willful choices to allow God’s will to be preeminent in your life, unless you are filled – baptized – overwhelmed with the Holy Spirit!
The soulish will seeks self over God every time – or a religious soulish will seeks to manipulate God with attempts at bargaining: “I will do this, if you’ll do that…”
The Spirit filled will simply seeks to know God’s will and chooses to live in it.
Here’s one test to see if you are walking in the power of the Holy Spirit: In the midst of everyday life, I am increasingly asking questions like – “What is God up to?” or “Since God is doing this, how can I cooperate with Him in accomplishing His will?”
Let’s move on…
2. The Spirit-Filled Will does not allow EMOTIONS and REASON to dominate.
Have you ever had a really difficult day? Filled with discouragement? Filled with desires that are clearly at odds with God’s will? Some of us go shopping on this day – we want to feel good, so we buy something. Some of us surf the internet looking for porn on these days – we want to feel good, so we seek sexual satisfaction. We can feed our emotions with lots of choices.
• Somebody cuts us off on the freeway – and we scream at them and give them the bird.
• Somebody at work is moving ahead of us, so we criticize them to our co-workers, seeking to make ourselves feel better.
But a Spirit-filled and empowered person makes a willful choice to not allow their EMOTIONS and FEELINGS dominate and run the show.
Proverbs 29:11 says:
“A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.” Proverbs 29:11
Keeping our selves under control is a choice of the will.
The Spirit-Filled Will chooses to see emotions for what they are – things that need to be brought under the Lordship of Christ.
Another one of the great battles we face occurs between our ears – the soulish will demands answers to all of it’s questions. Before we can take action steps, we expect God to tell us how everything is going to work out. Before I accept Christ, I want to have all the answers. Before I tithe, I want to KNOW that God will make it up. The soulish will demands answers and guarantees.
Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 10…
“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5
• The Spirit-Filled Will responds to any thought, any argument, any concept that goes against God in one way: It takes that thought captive and requires it to be submitted to Christ!
• The Spirit-Filled Will says to any thought that is contrary to TRUTH: “No! I will not believe nor even entertain that thought! I choose to believe Christ at His word, regardless!”
Finally…
3. The Spirit-Filled Will is a CONDUIT for renewing the mind and for discovering emotional well-being through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Let’s face it, the restoration process in our lives has a long way to go. And when you are baptized in the Holy Spirit, and when you are walking in a Spirit-Filled Will – God uses your will to be a conduit, a pipeline, a channel for the continuation of His renewal process.
For instance, the Spirit-Filled Will enables God to renew your soul. Jeremiah 15:16 says…
“When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s (SOUL) delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.” Jeremiah 15:16, NIV.
Listen to that same text in the Good News Translation:
“You spoke to me, and I listened to every word. I belong to you, Lord God Almighty, and so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness.” Jeremiah 15:16 Good News Translation (GNT)
Let’s take that verse apart, line by line:
• “You spoke to me…” – This is the gift of faith.
• “and I listened to every word…” – This is the response of a Spirit-Filled Will.
• “I belong to You, Lord God Almighty…” – This is the new IDENTITY that comes with the gift of Faith!
• “and so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness.” – The word ‘heart’ is one of the words used for SOUL. And the result of receiving His word is joy and happiness that is not based upon temporal circumstances.
When you willfully choose to listen to God, to claim your new identity, to receive His words into your soul, you are transformed, you are being renewed. Your Spirit-Filled Will serves a conduit for this transformation.
Paul wrote:
“My inner being delights in the law of God.” Romans 7:22 GNT
Again, - the word ‘inner being’ refers to the soul. Paul is saying in the midst of Romans 7 as he acknowledges his continual struggle with sin and failure, that at the very core of who he really is – his true IDENTITY, his soul delights in God’s ways!
Psalms 37 speaks to this:
“Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him…” Psalms 37:4-7, NIV.
This is a choice – the choice of the Spirit-filled will. Make God your passion, your desire, your hunger. The object of your affections – and He will come through.
So - HOW DOES THIS WORK?
1. First of all, it won’t unless you are baptized in the Holy Spirit. You can be a Christian for decades and not be baptized in the Holy Spirit. And the result is that you are living a soulish Christianity. And you probably don’t have much joy. You probably struggle way more than you need to.
God didn’t design you to be a soulish Christian.
He gives His Holy Spirit to all who will finally come to the end of their self and surrender to His power.
ASK for God to overwhelm every part of you. You’ve already invited Christ to be your Savior, and He has become that. Now, invite Him to invade your space. Stop holding Him at a nice, comfortable distance, allow Him unhindered access.
So go ahead and ASK Jesus to baptize you in the Holy Spirit.
“Heavenly Father, I thank You that I am under the protection of the precious blood of Jesus which has cleansed me from all sin. Dear Lord Jesus, please baptize me in the Holy Spirit and let me praise You with whatever expressions you give me. Thank You, Lord; I believe that You’re doing this right now! In Jesus’ Name, I pray…”
BELIEVE you receive the moment you ask.
“Ask and you shall receive that your joy may be full.” John 16:24
CONFESS with your lips the praises of God!
Begin right now to praise and acknowledge what God has done for you – use whatever words He gives you! Speak! Don’t be silent! Worship! Bless! Praise!
2. Once you’ve been baptized in the Holy Spirit, start making Spirit-Filled Willful statements.
Look at the list of statements I’ve suggested:
• When facing a time when you feeling arrogant: “I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders.” Psalms 9:1
• When your emotions say ‘serve me’ you say: “I am your servant; give me understanding, so that I may know your decrees.” Psalms 119:125 NRSV
• When it’s all about you: “I will magnify the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,” Luke 1:46, 47, NIV.
• When bitterness and grudges come: “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Jeremiah 31:34
• When I want my own way: “…not my will, but yours be done.” Luke 22:42
• When I want to be in control: “I will trust in You.” Psalms 55:23 KJV
• When I want to have a pity-party: “I will be glad in the LORD.” Psalms 104:34 NRSV
• When I lack peace: I will “Seek peace and pursue it.” Psalms 34:14
• When I want to give up: I “will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” Romans 14:4
• When I want to isolate: “I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.” Psalms 122:1, NIV.
These are just illustrations of the statements that the SPIRIT-FILLED WILL makes. We need to SPEAK these statements – to God, to our out-of-control emotions, to our needy intellect, to our flesh that wants feeding – so that the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT can be tapped into and you can move forward as a person of God!
Christ is calling us as His beloved children to BELIEVE HIM to empower us to live according the the power of the Holy Spirit!
posted by Doug Love at 10:13 AM
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