August 31, 2008
Morning Worship
Text: Galatians 5:22-23
Subject: The Spirit and the Flesh
Title: In the Spirit
I want to talk to you today about Revival. That’s one of my favorite subjects. I want to tell you something; there is no true revival unless it is Holy Ghost revival. I mean there is no revival unless the spirit of God is in total control and the people of God are in complete dependence on the Holy Spirit.
I want to begin by sharing some reports of revivals that have taken place in the past. As we do I want you to pay close attention to what was going on there as revival broke out.
1739
Monday 1 January - London (George Whitefield, John Wesley)
1739 saw astonishing expansion of revival in England. On 1st January the Wesleys and Whitefield (now returned from America) and four others from their former Holy Club at Oxford in their students days, along with 60 others, met in London for prayer and a love feast. The Spirit of God moved powerfully on them all. Many fell down, overwhelmed. The meeting went all night and they realized they had been empowered in a fresh visitation from God.
John Wesley wrote,
’Mr. Hall, Kinchin, Ingham, Whitefield, Hitchins, and my brother Charles were present at our lovefeast in Fetter Lane, with about sixty of our brethren. About three in the morning, as we were continuing instant in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us, insomuch that many cried out for exceeding joy, and many fell to the ground. As soon as we were recovered a little from that awe and amazement at the presence of his majesty, we broke out with one voice, "We praise Thee, O God, we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord"
1801
August - Cane Ridge, Kentucky (Barton Stone)
Impressed by the revivals in 1800, Barton Stone, a Presbyterian minister, organised similar meetings in 1801 in his area at Cane Ridge north-east of Lexington. A huge crowd of around 12,500 attended in over 125 wagons including people from Ohio and Tennessee. At that time Lexington, the largest town in Kentucky, had less than 1,800 citizens. Now Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptist preachers and circuit riders formed preaching teams, speaking simultaneously in different parts of the camp grounds, all aiming for conversions of sinners.
James Finley, later a Methodist circuit rider, described it:
’The noise was like the roar of Niagara. The vast sea of human being seemed to be agitated as if by a storm. I counted seven ministers, all preaching at one time, some on stumps, others in wagons and one standing on a tree which had, in falling, lodged against another. ...
’I stepped up on a log where I could have a better view of the surging sea of humanity. The scene that then presented itself to my mind was indescribable. At one time I saw at least five hundred swept down in a moment as if a battery of a thousand guns had been opened upon them, and then immediately followed shrieks and shouts that rent the very heavens’ (Pratney 1994:104).
Easter Saturday 14 April - Azusa Street, Los Angeles
’At Azusa, services were long, and on the whole they were spontaneous. In its early days music was a cappella, although one or two instruments were included at times. There were songs, testimonies given by visitors or read from those who wrote in, prayer, altar calls for salvation or sanctification or for baptism in the Holy Spirit. And there was preaching. Sermons were generally not prepared in advance but were typically spontaneous. W. J. Seymour was clearly in charge, but much freedom was given to visiting preachers. There was also prayer for the sick. Many shouted. Others were "slain in the Spirit" or "fell under the power." There were periods of extended silence and of singing in tongues. No offerings were collected, but there was a receptacle near the door for gifts. ...
1949
Hebrides Islands, Scotland (Duncan Campbell)
’God was beginning to move, the heavens were opening, we were there on our faces before God. Three o’clock in the morning came, and GOD SWEPT IN. About a dozen men and women lay prostrate on the floor, speechless. Something had happened; we knew that the forces of darkness were going to be driven back, and men were going to be delivered. We left the cottage at 3 am to discover men and women seeking God. I walked along a country road, and found three men on their faces, crying to God for mercy. There was a light in every home, no one seemed to think of sleep
1993
Sunday 2 May - Brisbane, Australia (Neil Miers)
Neil Miers, International President of the Christian Outreach Centre (COC) arranged for Jill Austin to speak at their pastors’ conference in New Zealand in April 1993.
Jill is from Kansas City where she is a part of the prophetic team at Metro Christian Fellowship. God has used her to impart his manifest presence to congregations; to bring refreshment, prophetic vision and proclamation, and to ignite the fires of God among them. That happened in New Zealand, causing drunkenness in the Spirit, visions, prophecies, laughter, tears, and people overwhelmed on the floor. One reporter wrote, “Some staggered drunkenly, others had fits of laughter, others lay prostrate on the floor, still more were on their knees while others joined hands in an impromptu dance. Others, although showing no physical signs, praised the Lord anyway, at the same time trying to take it all in.”
That gets me to where I want to be today. I want to speak to you today about the flesh and the Spirit. In all the reports of great spiritual revival that I read there was one common thing involved. When the Spirit of God moved there were physical manifestations.
Open your bibles to Romans 14:17 – and then turn to Galatians 5:22-23. I want to share with you today some thoughts that may be a little different than what you have been taught in the past – but just because it’s different doesn’t make it wrong.
Romans 14:17, For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,
Galatians 5:22-23, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Lord, open my eyes to see and my ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.
I. What does “In the Spirit” mean? In the NIV there are 7 different places that refers to being in the spirit. These references include going forth in the Spirit, praying in the Spirit, love in the Spirit, being “in the Spirit” and being carried away, “in the Spirit”. Being in the Spirit means this – you have placed yourself in a position, by seeking a closer relationship with the Lord – to receive something from the Holy Spirit. In Romans 14 Paul wrote, For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, He was talking about pleasing God by what you did or didn’t eat or drink – that is merely physical - but the kingdom of God is a matter of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit… That sound very spiritual doesn’t it. We are supposed to have righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Now look at Galatians 5, 22-23, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. These things are the result of being in the Spirit, or being influenced by the Spirit. So when we talk about being in the Spirit, when we have made up our minds to seek after God in order to have that deeper and more intimate relationship with Him, we enter into the spirit realm. One of the easiest ways to enter in or get in the Spirit is to worship Him. So when we sing, “Here I am to worship”… we aren’t just singing words to a song but we are literally entering into that throne room that we now have access to through the blood of the sinless Lamb. There is nothing to hold us back. Hebrews 10:19-22, 19Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith… You see that is being in the Spirit. When you want to be in God’s presence that way… When you are sincere in that kind of relationship with Him… When you have the full assurance of faith that when you approach Him in that way you know that He is there and that He will respond to you - That’s what being in the Spirit means.
II. The Spirit in opposition to the Flesh. When we talk about being in the flesh, if we look at it in biblical terms, it means giving in to the temptations of the enemy in order to satisfy the cravings of the flesh. Paul also refers to it as being under the Law in order to satisfy God’s perfect standards by what you do in the body (in the flesh) – it can’t be done. We aren’t slaves to the Law like that any longer which means we are not slaves to the flesh. First Peter 2:11, Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. James 1, 13When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. So it is easy to see the vast difference between being in the Spirit and being in the flesh. Right? Well, here is a problem. Somewhere between the book of Acts and now the church began to place a negative connotation on the word flesh in relationship with a move of the Holy Spirit. . Now if “flesh” refers to sin and appeasing the sinful nature then being in the flesh is wrong. But at some point we began to look at the manifestations of the Holy Spirit as being flesh and not from God. I have to tell you that I have talked to some pastors who say they want revival in their churches. In the next breath they tell me about how they have seen excesses and abuses from people being “in the flesh”. From what I can tell they have more faith that people are going to move in the flesh than they have in the Holy Spirit’s ability to move through people. I don’t have any doubt that there have been abuses in the past where people have said or done “spiritual” things that were not really of the Spirit. But I have to tell you that will never cause me to doubt the manifestations of the Spirit. Greater is He who is at work in the church than he who is at work in the world.
III. The Spirit and the Flesh working in conjunction. Let’s go back to our original two passages. Romans 14:17, For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, Galatians 5:22-23, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. OK, so if we look at the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy. Peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, and Romans 14 says that the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit what does that say to us? Does it mean that when we have something “in the Spirit” it is something that is inward – in the inner man? Is our peace simply an inner conviction that we have? What about our righteousness? Is it just on the inside? And all the fruit of the Spirit? Are they all just something that we know we have because of our relationship with the Lord and the Holy Spirit living in us? Not at all. But every one of these things that are mentioned really doesn’t have any significance until they are manifested in the flesh. Do you understand what I’m saying? Here’s my point, The things we experience in the Spirit are made known in the natural. So if we say we have love in our spirits but it isn’t shown in our lives, what kind of love is that? The same could be said for all the rest of those Christian characteristics that are mentioned here. Let’s pick one – Joy! I have heard it taught ever since I started listening to preachers that when we say we have the joy of the Lord it doesn’t mean that you are happy all the time. The joy comes from just knowing that you are saved. You don’t have to show it on the outside. But Romans 14 says we have righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Galatians says that joy is included in the spiritual fruit! What good is it if it isn’t seen on the outside? Let’s go back to what it means to be in the Spirit - Just being in God’s presence. Now let’s look at some other Bible verses. Leviticus 9:23-24, 23Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. 24Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown. Job 8:21, He will yet fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with shouts of joy. Job 33:26, He prays to God and finds favor with him, he sees God’s face and shouts for joy; Psalm 95:1, Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. As I said before, worship, going into the presence of the Lord is what moves you to be “in the Spirit”. If you are in the Spirit, and you have the fruit of the spirit, when you experience joy what does the Bible say happens? They sing, the shout, they fall down, they find favor with Him. When you find favor with God He wants to bless you. He wants to bless you in the spirit and in the natural.
I want to finish with this. When people get in the Spirit they shout, they dance, they fall, they sing… How does that happen? Does the Holy Spirit come into someone and open their mouths/ Does He move their feet? Does He force people to the ground? The Spirit only will do in you what you are willing to let Him do. In the revivals of old people were so hungry for God that they submitted their whole being to Him. When the Holy Spirit moved they cooperated.
As a people who live in the natural/physical realm, but are called to worship in spirit and in truth, what should your response be?
Lord, whatever you are doing in me in the Spirit, I’ll let it be seen in the flesh.
So if we want to compare what is really “spiritual” to what we consider is “flesh” remember this – knowing that what is in the spirit of a man is meant to be made known in the flesh – if you choose not to respond to what the Spirit is doing, you have now let the flesh take control.
What is the Holy Spirit calling you to today?
