Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
Many times when people need something, they will jump into their car, and run into town to make a purchase somewhere. Perhaps they pull over at the local hardware store to pick up a lawnmower, or visit the sporting goods shop to buy some recreational things for the family. Maybe your daughter really wants a brand new bike, and your son wants some fishing gear and a kayak. After they finally make their decisions, you pull out some cash from out of your wallet so they can pay for them up at the register. Normally when people are all done at the checkout, the attendant will give you a receipt or proof of purchase for all the things that you bought, showing that they are now yours and belong to you.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
The Lord Jesus has also purchased us with His very own blood, and we belong to Him. When we place our faith in Christ and His work of redemption for us on the cross, we become sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is Gods proof of purchase that He has paid for us in full.
Ephesians 1:11-14 (KJB) In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, 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, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
When we become a born again Christian, we become a part of the family of God, and before we even get to heaven, God grants us the Holy Spirit, which is part of our Heavenly inheritance. Obviously we need to overcome all of the sinful things of this world in order to eventually receive our full inheritance that awaits us in the Kingdom of God.
Revelation 21:7 (KJB) He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
When we become a believer in Jesus, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, but we still reside in these wretched human bodies, and will have to deal with the carnal nature that is inside each one of us. I used to remember seeing pictures of a Saint standing on one side of your shoulders and the devil standing on the other. One of them is leading you towards obedience, while the other tries to tempt you to go against the will of God. The carnal part of our human nature might try to tempt you, but we must listen and obey the Spirit of God. It’s a battle of the conscience to overcome the desires of the flesh in order to walk according to the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16-17 (KJB) This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Galatians 5:24-25 (KJB) And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Although we are given the Holy Spirit, we must become obedient to its guidance, because if you choose to obey the flesh, God is going to make you aware of that.
Philippians 3:15 (KJB) Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.
When we are filled up with faith in Christ, we become born again, and possess the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. But God through His Holy Spirit will rebuke the hearts of disobedient children, by convicting their conscience of the error of their way.
1 John 3:20-21 (KJB) For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
When you receive the Holy Spirit, it also brings you into subjection to the Divine discipline of God.
Hebrews 12:5-11 (KJB) And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
The church had received the Holy Spirit of God, but at certain times they weren’t obeying the Holy Spirit, and because of this, they were rebuked by the Apostle for being reprobates to the faith.
2 Corinthians 13:5-6 (KJB) Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
We are warned in the scriptures not to grieve the Holy Spirit of God, which can happen because of disobedience to God’s will.
Ephesians 4:30 (KJB) And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Isaiah 63:10 (KJB) But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.
Acts 7:51 (KJB) Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
Psalms 78:40 (KJB) How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!
So when you become filled with the Holy Spirit, you have to listen to its guidance, because it’s going to convict you of your sins if you are doing the wrong thing. If people constantly rebel against it, they can eventually burn their conscience completely, which is why some people eventually abandon the faith.
1 Timothy 4:1-2 (KJB) Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
Romans 1:28 (KJB) And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Hebrews 3:10-11 (KJB) Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways..So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.
Remember that slaves could be purchased, but then later run away from their owner. Jesus purchased us with His blood, yet some people are going to run away from His will. Obviously it’s possible to lose your receipt for something that was bought for you, because you neglected to keep it safe. Don’t ever grieve the Holy Spirit by choosing to live a life of sin, but bear in mind that you were bought with a price, and the Holy Spirit is God’s…….
……..Proof of Purchase
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.
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