Often the generic question is asked, “How are you doing spiritually?” Or “What is your Spiritual Temperature?” But a more Biblical question should be asked, “How are YOU and the Holy Spirit getting along? For your relationship, and mine, to the Holy Spirit determine our spiritual condition, even our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
In mentoring guys for many years, I have identified that men have one of three basic relationships with the Holy Spirit: Who Enroll in MMM
- Some Men Do Not Have The Holy Spirit At All. This is the unsaved person (Romans 8:9). He lives in the flesh and for the flesh. His mind is centered on the things of the flesh (Romans 8:5-6) because he is dominated by “King Self.” What is Self? It is the rebellious, even incorrigible, nature of every human, passed down from Adam which seeks its own way, pleasure, comfort, viewpoint, etc. with little or no regard for others, not even God Himself. Such a guy is alive physically but dead spiritually (Ephesians 2:1-2). The inner man is dead toward God in his spirit (Romans 8:7), is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” He may be moral, even religious, a church attendant and even serving in the church, abundantly religious, but abysmally lost.
Note: Some enrolled in MMM, seek to obey the 10 “I’s”, but can’t and soon drop out. But praise the Lord, some discover they are lost and we win them to Christ, and they become true disciples who make disciples.
Note: One guy faked being filled with the Spirit – went up like a rocket, came down like a stone and finally admitted he was on drugs.
- Many Men, Perhaps Most Who Enroll in MMM – Have The Holy Spirit. In the past they turned from their sins, surrendered to Jesus Christ, and their bodies became the residence of the Holy Spirit. They attempted to obey the 10 “I’s,” and it seemed for a time they were succeeding, only to give up and drop out.
Their Problem: Though saved and having the Holy Spirit, they attempted to obey the 10 “I’s” in their own strength and found it impossible. In fact they were guilty of the “Galatia Heresy,” who began in the Holy Spirit but then turned to the law to please God. Paul is outraged and wrote, “O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, having begun in the Spirit, you now turn to the law.” The Galatians had received the Holy Spirit when they were saved (Gal. 4:4-7) not through the law but through saving faith. They were “foolish,” not lacking intelligence, but lacking obedience to the Holy Spirit. Moreover, they were “grieving” and “quenching” their Best Friend, the Wonderful Holy Spirit, who came to freed them from the law and deliver them not only from the penalty of sin but the power of sin.
Question: Are you among those who have the Holy Spirit, but are depending on your own strength to obey the 10 “I’s”? If so, be honest and cease this.
- The Holy Spirit Has You. (Romans 8:9-17). It is not enough for us to have the Spirit. The Holy Spirit must have us. Not enough for Him to be Present, but to be President or Lord of our lives. Only then can He share with us the abundant and victorious life that can be ours through the Risen Christ.
In Romans 7, Paul gives us the picture of despair and defeat we encounter when we depend upon our flesh. We are “Wretched,” which means tired, exhausted, defeated. But having drawn this picture, he immediately thanks God for victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 7:24-25) and shifts to Romans 8, which details the victories which are ours when we are controlled by the indwelling Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18).
No obligation to the flesh, for the flesh has only brought trouble (8:12).
Our obligation is to the Spirit (v. 13).
The Holy Spirit is also the “Spirit of Death,” for He enables us to put to death the sinful deeds of the body (v. 13).
We can “walk and be led by the Holy Spirit. The verb means “willingly led.”
The Holy Spirit is also the “Spirit of Adoption,” making us God’s son and able to cry out to our Father, “Abba” which means “Papa” – a term of endearment.
The Holy Spirit frees us from the “law of sin and death.” (8:2).
The Holy Spirit quickens our physical body. L. Moody describes his existence through the Holy Spirit, “I was in a new world…the sun shone brighter, the birds sang sweeter…the old elms waved their branches with joy, and all nature was at peace.”
The Holy Spirit makes “intercession for us” as we pray with unutterable groanings (v. 26 )
As the Holy Spirit applies to us and in us the resurrection life of Jesus, we are not just conquerors, but “More Than Conquerors Through Him Who Loves Us (34-39).
Illus: D.L. Moody, “If I had a choice of living in the Garden of Eden or the 8th chapter of Romans, I would choose the 8th Chapter of Romans.”
Question: WHAT IS YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO THE HOLY SPIRIT?
- Are You Without The Holy Spirit? If so, be honest, admit you are lost, turn from your sins to Jesus (that’s repentance), trust Him to save you (Acts 20:21), surrender all to Him, and He will enter and save you.
- Do You Have The Holy Spirit, but still are trying to obey the 10 “I’s” in your own strength but feel discouraged, frustrated, a failure, up one day and down the next, you have what I call “Yo Yo” religion? You attend one mentoring class, then miss 3; try to internalize the Word but can’t; attend mentoring classes for weeks until you just get discouraged and drop out? Alas, the great number who have done just this. The numbers run in the hundreds and even thousands perhaps. If those who started had continued, the Trask Stadium would scarcely hold them.
- Does The Holy Spirit Have YOU? And you can say with Paul, “I can do all things through the Holy Spirit which inflows my life” (Phil. 4:13). Or “I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ who lives in me, and the life I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20). Or, “I am what I am by the grace of God, and your grace was not bestowed upon me in vain, for I worked more abundantly than they all, and yet not I but the grace of God which was with me.” (1 Cor. 15:10) – BB’s life verse. And “He is able to make all grace abound toward you that you having all sufficiency in all things may abound to every good work (2 Cor. 9:8).