When I first became a Christian the Refiner’s Fire song was just released. It quickly became a favourite and a prayer of my heart.
I have not heard it for years, but I started singing it during my devotions this morning. Many years later it still speaks to my heart. It is still a prayer for me.
Looking back I can see how it shaped my life. In church I could hardly get through it without crying. Even now it is hard to fully sing it through.
If you are interested you can find it here on YouTube.
All of us have a purpose from God. We were born at this time in history to fulfil our God given purpose. God has made us and gifted us all to do His work.
The great news is we do not have to fulfil His purpose alone. He gives us His Holy Spirit to empower us and the Holy Spirit gifts us to complete our tasks.
In the Bible we see there are four main places that talk about gifts from God to individuals to serve and gifts to the church for equipping.
The first group of gifts is found in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. These are often called the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit decides who gets what gift.
[4] There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. [5] There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. [6] God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. [7] A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. [8] To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. [9] The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. [10] He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. [11] It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
The second group of gifts is found in Romans 12:6-8. Bible scholars sometimes call these the gifts of the Father. In this list it tells us the gift and the importance of using them well.
[6] In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. [7] If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. [8] If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
In the third list of gifts it talks about different roles within the church. These are sometimes called Christ’s gifts to the church. These gifts are found in Ephesians 4:11-12. The purpose is to equip the church for service.
[11] Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. [12] Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.
In the final list of gifts it only lists two gifts, but it gives us information on how to use them – for the good of others and to use the strength and energy God provides. It also reminds that the reason for our service is to bring glory to God. This list is found in 1 Peter 4:10-11.
[10] God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. [11] Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.
I really find these lists of gifts helpful in our service of God. God has a purpose and destiny for each of us. Just like God said to Jeremiah, He knit us together in our mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5). He made us and gifted us to serve Him in this time.
As Christians we have the Holy Spirit within us as and this is the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead (Romans 8:11). He gifts us to serve God, by serving others, and He empowers us to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8).
Today I would like to remind us all that not only were we made by God for this times in history, but He made us to serve Him by giving us gifts and power from heaven. Let us purpose in our hearts to use our gift well.
I was reading Psalm 139 this week. As I read four things really stood out to me. As I thought about them I realise they are four things that are important for us to know if we really want to be all we can be for the Lord. Hence, the title of my message is Four lessons from Psalm 139.
Before I read the chapter I want to have a quick overview of David’s life as he is the one who wrote many of the Psalms.
Overview of David’s life
God raised David from humble origins as a shepherd from Bethlehem to rule as Israel’s second king. According to Bible Scholars David was born 1040 BC and lived to 970 BC. He was 69 or 70 when he died. He was the youngest of Jesse’s eight sons. David led Israel to its pinnacle of power and glory and as history tells us David’s descendant was Jesus.
David showed success in various roles, including Shepherd, Military leader, King, Covenantal recipient, Poet, Musician and a Religious example to us.
David also had his failures too (you can read about a major one in 2 Samuel 11). David’s failures as a father and king show him as an imperfect man whom God both disciplined and blessed. After all his failings, to hear God describe as a man of His own heart is amazing. It says a lot about David and even more about God.
Bible Reading – Psalm 139:1-24
Message Points
As I read through this passage four main ideas spoke to me.
1. God really knows us
“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.” (v1-2)
Verses 1-6 tells us that God really knows us inside out. He knows our thoughts and our daily actions. He knows all about us like no one else. He knows us better than our parents or our spouses. And He loves deeply. He cares for us deeply”, even though He knows all!
It is reassuring to remember that God knows us personally and intimately. If the very hairs of our heads are numbered as it tells us in Matthew 10:30, then God does not need a birth certificate or a social security number to prove who we are; to know who we are, and where we are, and what we are deep down inside!
As humans, we naturally only show our good sides to people. We fall into the trap of wearing masks to conceal who we really are. We figure if people knew the real us, they would not like us or they would reject us. Not so with God. He knows us inside out. He knows us warts and all. Yet He still loves us and He chooses to be our friend.
2. God is always with us
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” (v7)
“You go before me and follow me. You place Your hand of blessing on my head.” (v5)
Verses 7-11 tell us that God is always with us. There is nowhere in all creation that God is not present with us. There is no place we can flee to escape His presence. This gives me great comfort knowing God is always there.
God always being with us is a recurrent theme of the Bible”:
Deuteronomy 31:8 “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
1 Kings 8:57 “May the LORD our God be with us as He was with our ancestors; may He never leave us or abandon us.”
Matthew 28:20 “Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Hebrews 13:5 “Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
1 Corinthians 3:16 “Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”
God is always with us. He goes before us when we are on the move. He promises to be with us like He was with those before us who called on His name. When we are doing His work of making disciples, He is with us. We don’t have to fear for the future and His provision, He will never abandon us. Finally, His Spirit dwells within us. God is always with us”: in all situations of life. He is not going anywhere.
3. God made us wonderful
“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (13-14)
Verses 13-18 tells us that God made us. He knitted us together in our mother’s womb. He was right there at the beginning. He created exactly as He needs us to be”: and it is flawless. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.
You were chosen before the world was made (Ephesians 1:4-5)
You were created and equipped for good works (Ephesians 2:10)
You are adopted into His family (John 1:12)
You have the Holy Spirit living inside you (Romans 8:11)
You are no longer condemned (Romans 8:1)
You are seated with Christ (Ephesians 2:4-7)
You were knit together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13)
You are truly loved by God (1 John 4:9-10)
You are free in Christ (John 8:36)
Today I just want to remind you that God made you wonderful. You are amazing. You are special. You are loved.
4. We need God to search our hearts
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (v23-24)
In the last section of verses 19-24 we see that David wanted God to search his heart. He didn’t want any wrong attitude or thought to be in his mind. He didn’t want his hatred for his enemies to blind him or be something between him and God. He wanted a clean and pure heart. We need to ask God to search our hearts too.
Jeremiah 17:10 talks about God searching our hearts too. “But I, the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”
If we want to walk closely with the Lord, we need to ask Him to search our hearts like David did. We want God to create a clean heart in us too. Asking Him to search our hearts is a key to learning if our attitudes and desires are wrong in His eyes.
As I said a few weeks ago, that when we sin we can be like Adam and Eve and hide from God, but God went searching for them. He also sent His Son to die for our sin and Jesus now is our Advocate in heaven.
It is better to be like David and ask God to search our hearts, then we can be right with God and walk with Him with a clean heart.
Conclusion
God knows us inside out and He still loves us. God is always with us wherever we go in this world. God the Master craftsman, created us wonderful. We need God to examine and pinpoint any offensive ways in us so we can confess and walk in purity and holiness.
Living a Spirit filled life is key if we are going to be all we can be for Christ. Before salvation the Holy Spirit draws us to Jesus and He convicts us of our sin. At the point of salvation, He washes us clean and regenerates us, He then comes to live inside us, seals us as God’s own, makes us more Christ-like, gives us gifts to serve, and brings fruit in our lives. So, living Spirit Filled is vital.
In his book “Know what you believe” Paul Little put it this way…
“The fullness of the Spirit is not a matter of our receiving more of Him. Rather, it is a matter of relationship. To be filled with the Spirit means we allow Him to occupy, guide, and control every area of our lives. His power can then work through us, making us effectively fruitful for God and flooding our hearts with His joy. This filling applies not only to our outward acts but to our inner thoughts and motives. When we are filled with the Spirit, all we are and have is subject to His control” (p77-78).
Now I want to use the letters of Spirit filled to give us some pointers to putting it all into practice.
S—Submit to the authority of Jesus Christ.
Recognize God’s claim on your life. Realize that God’s plan is to conform you to the image of Christ. Relinquish your right to be in control of your life. These are keys to being Spirit Filled.
“Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” (Matthew 16:24)
P—Pray for conviction of sin.
Acknowledge your natural inclination to sin. Ask the Holy Spirit to make you aware of your specific sins. Agree with God about your need to change.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me.” (Psalm 139:23–24)
I—Identify with Christ’s death on the cross.
See yourself as dead to the ruling power of sin. See yourself as alive to God because of the resurrection life of Christ within you. See the Holy Spirit as your power to overcome sin.
“Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:11)
R—Recognize the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit to teach you and to guide you.
Listen with your heart to the One sent by the Father. Listen to the gentle promptings of the Holy Spirit. Listen to His reminders of the truth as spoken by Jesus.
“The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
I—Initiate immediate obedience to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Choose to acknowledge the presence of the Holy Spirit. Choose to submit your will to His will. (Don’t mentally argue.) Choose to act on His promptings.
“Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (Galatians 5:16)
T—Trust in the Holy Spirit to be your supernatural power for living a holy life.
You have been called to be holy. You cannot be holy by your own efforts. You must rely on the Holy Spirit, who enables us to live a holy life.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” (2 Peter 1:3)
F—Fellowship on a regular basis with other believers.
Belong to a Bible-based church. Become involved in your church. Be supportive of others.
“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another.” (Hebrews 10:25)
I—Implant God’s Word in your heart.
Line up your thinking with God’s thinking. Read one chapter a day from the Book of Proverbs and allow it to transform your mind. Listen to teaching tapes on God’s Word.
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11)
L—Learn to have a thankful heart.
Thank God for His unconditional love. Thank God for His faithfulness to orchestrate events in your life. Thank God in all circumstances, both good and bad.
“Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
L—Live with an attitude of prayer.
Keep your mind focused on Christ. Keep your heart alert to the Holy Spirit. Keep praying through all circumstances.
“Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” (Ephesians 6:18)
E—Expect victory!
Know that your strength is in Christ. Know that your own efforts will fail. Know that victory is the Lord’s.
“‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 4:6)
D—Depend on the Holy Spirit to develop the character of Christ in your life.
To reflect the character of Christ is the Christian’s highest purpose. To the extent that you submit to the Holy Spirit, you will grow in Christ. To reflect Christ accurately will draw others to Him.
“We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Closing Summary
Today we used the letters of Spirit Filled to give us some clues of what it is to live a life that is controlled by the Holy Spirit. Here they are again.
S—Submit to the authority of Jesus Christ.
P—Pray for conviction of sin.
I—Identify with Christ’s death on the cross.
R—Recognize the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit to teach you and to guide you.
I—Initiate immediate obedience to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
T—Trust in the Holy Spirit to be your supernatural power for living a holy life.
F—Fellowship on a regular basis with other believers.
I—Implant God’s Word in your heart.
L—Learn to have a thankful heart.
L—Live with an attitude of prayer.
E—Expect victory!
D—Depend on the Holy Spirit to develop the character of Christ in your life.
A friend shared this story as a part of his homily on Sunday. The message was titled, “Exaltation of the Cross”. I found it quite interesting and I thought I would share it.
The feast of the exaltation of the cross goes back a long way. In 326 the Emperor Constantine’ mother, Helena, at the grand age of 80, set sail for Jerusalem to find the cross of Jesus and his tomb. She found the site of the Holy Sepulchre and established a church on the site, which is venerated to this day.
The true cross was more elusive. It was claimed that the Jewish leaders had hidden the cross in a well in Jerusalem. One of the Jewish leaders told the Empress Helena in which well to look for it. The story goes that they dug for days and found three crosses. They weren’t sure which one was the true cross, so the bishop of Jerusalem, St Macarius, sent the crosses off to the bed-side of a dying woman. She touched the first two crosses to no effect, but on touching the third cross she immediately recovered. St Helena had found her true cross.
The cross remained in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem until the early 7th century. The entire city was then looted by the Persian King, Chosroes II. He took the cross to Persia. In 628, Emperor Heraclius II overthrew the Persian king and brought the cross first to Constantinople, his capital and then in 629 to Jerusalem. Today’s feast commemorate the triumphant return of the holy cross to Jerusalem.
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