2020-08-21
Good Morning Dear Ones,
This week, the Holy Spirit urges me to write about how He works. Like Jesus Himself, the Holy Spirit never does anything that the Father hasn’t ordered [JN 14: 9, 11]. It came to be time for Christ’s arrest. Many sad things had happened, such as the disciples being unable to stay awake during that night in the Garden of Gethsemane, even though the Lord had begged them to do so. He sweated blood. LK 22: 42 was Christ’s prayer to the Father, “Father, if You will take this cup of suffering away from Me. Not My will, however, but Your will be done.” How could Christ forget the kangaroo court ahead by which He would be judged, all the while knowing He was innocent. He knew He could call upon the angels for help but held back, knowing these events were in line with the Father’s will. A crowd armed with swords and clubs sent by the priests and elders gathered. Suddenly, the ever-impulsive John struck and cut off the ear of High Priest’s slave, Malchus [LK 22: 50]. Jesus knew immediately how the Father felt about that, so He touched the place where the slave’s right ear had been, and He miraculously replaced it. Then, Christ turned to the crowd saying, “You have come with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as if I were a criminal. ‘I’m the same Person Who taught at the temple, and you did not arrest Me then.’ All this has happened to make true what the prophets wrote about in the Scriptures” [MT 26: 55-56]. Christ’s courage and knowledge of the big picture were given to Him by the Father, through the Holy Spirit.
Long before Christ’s arrest, back as far as1 SAM 30: 1-6, we read the story of David and his men returning from battle to Ziklag where they had been originally staying. Upon this return David and his men discovered the town had been burned down and their families (including David’s own wives Ahinoam and Abigail) had been taken by their Amalekite enemies. His men cried out in anguish and threatened to stone him. At that time, the Lord God gave David courage enough to lead his men to find where the Amalekites had taken these wives and children. How relieved they were to find them all alive! Although it wasn’t said outright in this passage, it can be reasonably assumed that the Holy Spirit was used here to give David the leadership courage he had, just a Jesus later knew the Father’s will.
It’s appropriate to say that all three personalities of God--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--are the same yesterday, today, and forever. That’s why Peter was told by the Holy Spirit to advise people, no matter when, as in 1 PET 3: 15-17. “Have reverence for Christ in your hearts and honor Him as Lord. Be ready to answer at all times anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in Him but do so with gentleness and respect. Keep your conscience clear, so that when you are insulted, those who speak evil of your good conduct as followers of Jesus Christ will be ashamed of what they say. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if this is God’s will, than for doing evil.”
HE 13: 12-14 gives us an important reminder. Christ was crucified outside the city, so that His blood shed would purify us from our sin. There is no permanent city for us, because we await another city, which is to come. Remember how Miriam, who had criticized her younger brother, Moses, for marrying a Cushite (Ethiopian) girl? This angered the Lord, who had her removed for a week from the camp and punished with a temporary case of Leprosy [now called Hansen’s Disease]. The Lord decided this was enough punishment for Miriam, and she was returned to the camp and healed [NU 12: 1-16]. Healing from the Lord is accomplished through the Holy Spirit.
There are times in my own life when something came to me through the Holy Spirit. You may know some of your own experiences with Him. When my first marriage was about to break up, because we had married too young, I heard His whisper telling me to leave, rather than my ex-husband’s plan for him to move out. I acted on that and moved with our son to a condo next door to another man I had never met. Over the ensuing year, this man and I became acquainted at first. Our friendship developed into a best friendship, and then, the rest is history. That man became my second husband over time, and now, we have been married almost 44 years. It’s been a happy marriage the whole time.
PRAYER: O Lord, I and other believers in Jesus Christ are able “to come to You with freedom and confidence” [EPH 3: 12] at any time and know that He care enough about us to listen. Over time, we have learned that Your Spirit can lead us outside of our comfort zones to situations or tasks we didn’t know we could do. These are not self-discoveries, as they are often described, but are “divine appointments.” We meet people who help to increase our faith, maturing us spiritually, so that we discover new ways we can serve You and help others at the same time. We see we can do things new to us and revealing. We discover skills that You created in us. We humans don’t have omnipotence or other supernatural qualities You have, and we acknowledge this fact. Our wisdom and skills are far more limited than Yours. You work with the power to do good through Your Spirit, which has been shared with us by Christ. Throughout mankind’s history, You have recorded the use of Your wisdom and power to do good in Your word. As we study it, we grow spiritually. Dearest Father, we thank and praise You for all that is said in this prayer, in the holy/strong name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: Using the sacrificial behavior of Jesus Christ as an example, I have been commanded by the Holy Spirit to continue today’s discussion about how He works in our lives. Because my husband and I have had to adjust to the challenges of becoming elderly, we are still discovering new and initially difficult adjustments we must make. My husband now has to inure to a “boot-brace,” in order to walk normally. He goes to dialysis treatments three times a week, arising at 4 AM. I spend a lot of time sitting, because I live with constant nerve pain in both feet, where an autoimmune disease has destroyed the sensory nerves in them. Dry mouth and eyes are a constant nuisance. And yet, we have been given such extraordinary blessings by the Lord, that we can’t complain. God is a Resident in our home and our hearts. We can rely on His wisdom, guidance, love, and forgiveness every day. We have shared a peaceful and fulfilling companionship every day of our long marriage. Our lives are filled with loving and wise friendships. I could go on and on. God has given Peter the ability to understand electronics and computers. I can knit and crochet, cook, read, and write with skill. Neither of us lives with misery and loneliness. Both of us had serious illnesses and me major surgery in the past. And, we recovered completely from them by means of the Holy Spirit. The strength of our faithfulness grows actively. Thanks and praise to the Lord, seems hardly enough!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2020. All Rights Reserved.
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