Spirit Led

Why did Jesus tell the disciples to wait in Jerusalem, before fulfilling the Great Commission? Because he knew the disciples needed the Holy Spirit if they were going to do it right

So why do we think we can do it without the Holy Spirit?

Maybe none of us consciously have the thought, but don’t our actions betray us? We should be asking God what His will is before we do anything. The apostles prayed and fasted before making any decisions. Why don’t we?

I’m going to explore some examples of what happens when we try to do things without the Spirit, what happens when we walk in the Spirit, and how we can practically walk in the Spirit more every day.

So, what happens when we try to further God’s kingdom on our own, our own way?

We could all probably take examples from our own lives, but I’m going to share from the Bible. Now, in the New Testament, we pretty much only see either those who are completely Spirit led, or those who don’t hear from the Spirit, which makes it pretty hard to find examples. However, there are plenty of examples in the Old Testament!

How about Saul? When he was king, he knew how to recognize the voice of the Lord. 1 Samuel 11:6 mentions how the Spirit of God came upon Saul, and caused him to rally the Israelites to destroy their enemy.

He knew how to recognize God’s voice, yet in a later battle, when Samuel had not yet arrived to offer a sacrifice to God, Saul took it upon himself to offer the sacrifice, thinking that it was the sacrifice that mattered, and not the heart posture. This is told in 1 Samuel 13:9.

This brings a curse upon Saul, that his kingdom over Israel would be replaced. There are exceptions in the Bible, of people who aren’t priests offering sacrifices, but this was only if God directly commanded them (such as Gideon in Judges 6:26). Saul did something for the Lord, without the Lord’s instruction, and it backfired.

Or what about Moses striking the rock? Number 20:2-11 tells the story of how the Israelites were complaining about the lack of water, so Moses asks God what he is to do. God tells him to take his staff and speak to the rock and it will pour out water.

Moses obeyed the first part, taking his staff, but then he strikes the rock with it instead of speaking to it. Water still comes out, but God has to punish Moses for his lack of obedience. What I learn from this, is that partial obedience is not full obedience. That God will still use partial obedience, but there are consequences to disobedience, especially when He directly tells you to do something.

So, as we can see, it doesn’t matter what our intentions are, whether it’s furthering God’s kingdom or serving His people. All that matters is if we do it obediently, because through our obedience, God makes His Spirit available to us.

Let’s go to the New Testament now and look at some examples of how radical obedience, paired with the Holy Spirit, brings fruit far beyond what we could do on our own.

Acts 4:8 shares how Peter, full of the Spirit, is given words to say to the elders and teachers of law, who are amazed yet terrified by what the apostles are doing. Peter speaks boldly, with a courage that astonishes his accusers, and they eventually let him go. This is the same Peter who denied Jesus 3 times in the same night!!!

Or what about Paul, in Acts 19:11-12? “God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and evil spirits left them.” Acts 5:15 also mentions that the sick lined the streets to see Peter, in hopes that his shadow would fall on them and they would be healed!

This is what walking in the Spirit looks like! It’s boldness, it’s healing, it’s deliverance. Through the Holy Spirit, the Gifts of the Spirit were made available, and while those are amazing enough, there is still so much more the Holy Spirit does!!! It gives us words when we are put on trial (Mark 13:11). It teaches and reminds us of what Jesus has said (John 14:26). It defends and comforts us (the Biblical meaning of advocate). It gives us new revelations from God (Acts 9:9-20).

We see the disciples walking in all of these. But they weren’t specifically asking for these gifts so they could share the Good News. They obeyed when God said to share, and God did the rest.

It was when they were facing persecution that they pressed deeper into the Holy Spirit. Acts 4:29-31 says, “‘Now Lord, consider their threats and allow your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.’ After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”

This is what they did. They preached the Word, and God empowered them to do it. They preached because God asked them to preach the Word, and then God showed up to give them the ability to reach as many people as possible.

It was all God! We’re simply given the opportunity to be obedient and see God work in and through us, as He works in the lives of everyone around us.

Was it easy? Absolutely not! Obedience to God means breaking ties with the world, and the world is not the forgiving type. The apostles suffered deeply. Paul has a whole list of what he’s been through in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28. Write that reference down and read it later, when you’ve had time to really weigh out if it’s worth it for you to fully surrender yourself to God’s will.

Just keep this in mind. God’s plan is better than anything we could have ever come up with by ourselves, and when we follow it with complete obedience, He shows up to give us the strength, power, and authority to do His work.

God isn’t a boss, he’s a leader, and the best leaders lead by example, right alongside their workers, while empowering them to grow in their own strengths and abilities.

How do we go about bringing about God’s kingdom in God’s way? We all want to see His reign on earth, so how do we help know what He wants us to do?

By listening to God’s voice when seeking to do His will. If you’re not confident in that, then read the Bible until you are (and continue reading the Bible after you are confident, of course!). How can we know what He wants us to do if we can’t hear Him tell us?

We see in the Bible over and over again, that the Holy Spirit is strongest when we are obedient to God. And if we keep telling God, “No, I don’t want to do that?” Eventually, He’s going to stop telling us. He’s a gentleman. He’ll wait until we have ears to hear.

Are there areas of disobedience in your life that are acting like ear plugs to hearing God’s voice? It could be as simple as not spending time with Him when He asked you to. Or maybe you received a word for someone and never told them. Or maybe you felt led to talk to a person and ignored it as your own thoughts.

The ways in which we can disobey are endless, and the ways in which we can obey, only one. This is why the path we follow is narrow, but remember where it’s going. To eternal life!

A little fun fact about eternal. If you look up the definition online, it says, “lasting or existing forever, without beginning or end.” You know what that means. It’s not the end of the narrow path that leads to eternal life, but the narrow path is eternal life!

Walking in obedience, walking in the Spirit, walking according to God’s plan, is walking in eternal life! So let’s walk in eternal life!