The Holy Spirit and the Children of God:
“9) However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭9‬ ‭
“14) For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15) For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 16) The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,” Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭14‬-‭16‬
“10) By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.” 1 John‬ ‭3‬:‭10‬ ‭
I want to talk for a moment about a very important subject. It is mentioned more in the New Testament than most ever notice. What is the difference between the children of God and the children of the devil? (1 John 3:10)
According to the above verses, it is the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit in the life of the born-again believer. They have received the promise of the Father. This theme is woven throughout the entire New Testament.
If you have not become a temple of the Holy Spirit with the Spirit dwelling in you; something is wrong. (See 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19-20)
If you do not have rivers of life flowing from within you; something is wrong. (John 7:37-39)
If the fruit of the Holy Spirit is not evident in your life; something is wrong. (Galatians 5:22-24)
If your inner being does not cry out “Abba, Father”; something is wrong. (Galatians 4:6)
If there are no gifts of the Holy Spirit being manifest in and through your life; something is wrong. (1 Corinthians 12:11)
If there is no unity of the Spirit with other born-again believers; something is wrong. (Ephesians 4:1-3)
If there is no inner anointing of the Holy Spirit teaching you; something is wrong. (1 John 2:25-27)
If there is no evidence of sanctification and regeneration in your life; something is wrong. (Titus 3:4-7)
If there is no Zoe life in you; something is wrong. (Romans 8:11)
I could go on and on with many passages of Scripture. I am very concerned about the modern church which holds to a form of godliness but denies the power of the Promise from the Father.
In the past few weeks, I have been asked to pray for several people involved in churches but having deep spiritual struggles. In each case, I started at the beginning by asking if they had ever repented of their sin and placed saving faith in Jesus Christ.
Five of them responded with blank looks on their faces and basically said they were trying to be religious so God would accept them. I quickly reviewed the gospel with them and led them into receiving Jesus Christ into their lives. The transformation was immediate and glorious!
Until you become a child of God through personal saving faith in Jesus Christ, you will forever be frustrated trying to live the Christian life. The precious Promise of the Father and the deep things of the Holy Spirit will remain like foolishness to you. (1 Corinthians 2:12-16)
It doesn’t work to skip salvation and then try to turn people into disciples of Christ! Start the way the early church did the gospel and dramatic conversions. (Acts 2:37-39) Then disciple making will become natural and organic because the Holy Spirit will be transforming them from within.
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
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Happy Resurrection Day!
“5) The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. 6) He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. 7) Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.”” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭5‬-‭7‬ ‭
Happy Resurrection Day! Jesus is not dead. He is alive!
There are many religions in the world. Only Christianity celebrates the One Who is the Resurrection and the Life. He can give eternal life because He is life.
The resurrection is not only the central theme of the gospel, it is what separates Christianity from every other world religion. In Him we have life!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
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Responding to the Inner Promptings of the Holy Spirit
“29) Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”” Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭29‬ ‭
“2) While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”” Acts‬ ‭13‬:‭2‬ ‭
“10) For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11) For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12) Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,” 1 Corinthians‬ ‭2‬:‭10‬-‭12‬
I want to speak about a subject seldom mentioned in the modern church. Every born-again and Spirit filled believer has the inner voice of the Holy Spirit within them.
He sometimes speaks to convict us of personal sin. Sometimes He teaches us and illuminates biblical truth to us. Other times He can give us a word of wisdom, knowledge or insight. Other times He is the Divine problem solver. Many times I have been stuck with a mechanical or building issue and the Holy Spirit has suddenly gives me the solution.
More often, the Holy Spirit fills the role of our guide. He did this for Phillip and the church at Antioch in the first two verses mentioned above.
As you learn to walk in the Spirit, caution must be taken because there are several voices that scream for our attention. My flesh has a voice. My emotions have a voice. My human reason has a voice. The world has a voice. The enemy has a voice and can shoot thoughts into my mind. But the inner Holy Spirit also has a voice.
So how do we discern the voice of the Holy Spirit? This is an important question. I have gotten it wrong. I have both acted on the wrong voice and ignored the promptings of the Holy Spirit. It takes time and practice to discern the inner voice of the Holy Spirit and walk in His ways.
Let me give you some insights into discerning the inner voice of the Holy Spirit.
First, does it line up with Scripture or does it lead me into sin or compromise?
Second, does it glorify Jesus or promote myself and my desires?
Third, does it advance the gospel or will the outcome be a distraction?
Fourth, is it accompanied by the fruit of the Spirit or promote the deeds of the flesh?
Fifth, as you wait on the Lord in sincere prayer, does the prompting grow louder and clearer?
Sixth, does stepping out and immediately obeying the inner prompting require faith, courage and obedience in ways that I would not naturally do?
Finally, is the Holy Spirit confirming and affirming the prompting in other ways? This may include things like accompanying circumstances, divine provisions, supernatural encounters with people, a stronger inner tug and confirming conversations from others who know nothing of your inner promptings.
When in doubt, I step out and obey and leave the results to God. This especially applies to speaking to a stranger, inserting the gospel into a conversation or meeting a financial or material need when prompted. I have hundreds of stories of how God has supernaturally worked through obeying small inner promptings of the Holy Spirit over the years.
In fact, GoServ Global started because I felt an inner nudge to pick up the phone and call Ken DeYoung when he returned from flying relief into Haiti at his own expense. God prompted me to call him and listen to his story. At that point, Ken was little more than an acquaintance.
I don’t even remember how I heard about his crazy step of obedience to take off and fly his own plane into that disaster. All I knew is that the Holy Spirit was strongly prompting me to pick up the phone and call Ken. I obeyed that inner voice. The rest is history.
As you grow in your walk with Jesus, that inner voice will get stronger and clearer. You will make mistakes. Be patient, humble and teachable. You will also begin to experience God in extraordinary ways.
Make it your hearts desire to serve Jesus and walk in the Spirit! Take responsibility when you mess up; give Him all the glory when the miraculous unfolds before you.
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
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Spiritual Gifts and the Body of Christ.
The three categories of spiritual gifts we have been studying are very fascinating. It must be noted that 1 Corinthians 12-14, Romans 12 and Ephesians 4 in context are all discussed in context of the metaphor of “the body of Christ.” To the extent that believers reflect the fulness of Christ in the church, we accurately reflect Him to the world.
This begs the question; “Did Jesus manifest the spiritual gifts in His life and ministry?” The answer is intriguing. During His public ministry, Jesus used and manifested every one of the spiritual gifts!
When this thought first occurred to me, I spent considerable time studying His life and ministry through the four Gospels with the above question in mind. Sure enough, they were all present at various times in His ministry. Why?
Spiritual gifts are expressions of His Divine nature and attributes. He was and is the fulness of Deity in bodily form. (Colossians 2:9) Therefore, He was the only One who could manifest all of the spiritual gifts.
1 Corinthians 12:7 says; “But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” Because the Holy Spirit is part of the trinity, He also manifests all of the Spiritual gifts. He is the source of the spiritual gifts and He distributed them within the body of Christ. (See 1 Corinthians 12:11)
Because the gifts are distributed among believers by the Holy Spirit, we need one another. Every gift is important and fills a crucial role in the body of Christ.
This is the crux of Paul’s argument to the Corinthian church as recorded in 1 Corinthians 12-14. Every member of the body is needed to have a whole and functioning body. The eye cannot function by itself. Neither can the ear, hand or foot. Every part is needed and necessary.
The same is true of the church. The body of Christ is like a physical body. Every member is needed and should function together for the whole to be complete. We need one another and should work together toward maturity as the body of Christ.
So which spiritual gifts has the Holy Spirit given you. Are you developing your gifts? Are you fitting into the local body of Christ? Are you accepting and making room for others. Are you open to the Holy Spirit manifesting other spiritual gifts through you as needed? Are you developing an appreciation for each of the spiritual gifts recorded in the New Testament or are you rejecting part of Jesus and the Holy Spirit?
This subject might challenge you, but it is important. You will never arrive at maturity in your walk with God apart from accepting and developing your spiritual gifts and making room for others and their gifts. We need one another.
The Promise of the Father included these manifestations of the Holy Spirit within the Body of Christ.
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoSev Global
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The Ministry Gifts
“11) And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12) for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;” Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭
The ministry gifts are found in Ephesians 4:11. They are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Some churches place significant emphasis on these five gifts. Other look at them as being for the entire body of Christ and not necessarily for each local church. Let’s look briefly at each of these five gifts.
The word “apostle” literally means “a sent out one.” Jesus appointed twelve apostles during His public ministry prior to the day of Pentecost, but several other men had the spiritual gift of “sent out ones” after the giving of the Holy Spirit. Paul was the most notable. He went on three missionary journeys and started many local churches. I personally see this as the modern missionary gift.
The word “prophet” in the New Testament sense is slightly different from the Old Testament prophet. They were leaders and a voice for God. They often foretold the future. But the New Testament gift most likely included being a gifted orator and commanding respect and following from people. They were often instrumental in giving direction and leadership to the Church. James is seen filling this role in the Jerusalem counsel in Acts 15.
The evangelists were people like Philip who spread the gospel and equipped others to do the same. He never pastored a church, but was defiantly a leader in the early church. They are wired to reach new people with the gospel.
The Pastor was looked at as being the shepherd in the church. They were there for the care and protection of the flock. Their goal is spiritual growth. They want to mentor, nurture and encourage others. John filled this role of shepherding in the early church. The book of 1 John is a great example
The teacher had the desire to bring solid biblical instruction to people. They delight in Bible studies and loved God’s Word both Old and New Testaments. They often have deep insights into Scripture and a knack at communicating in such a way as to make the Bible come alive. They love study and research. Luke may be a great example of a teacher in the early church.
These five gifts should work together to build up the body of Christ. They are the team Jesus calls to lead and train His church. As Ephesians 4:12 says, they are “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ…”. They work together to grow the church both numerically and in godly maturity. They replace themselves by training up the next generation of leaders.
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
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MOTIVATIONAL GIFTS: Romans 12:3-21 “3) For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. 4) For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5) so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6) Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7) if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; 8) or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭3‬-‭8‬ ‭
Notice in verse 6 Paul says; “Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly:…” These spiritual gifts are special graces given by God because they are all needed in the church. They are what makes us different from one another.
Do you ever wonder why you do the things you do or why others don’t value the things you prize in life? It is most likely because they are wired totally different. God has given them a grace gift to see the world through a different set of lenses.
In Romans 12:3-8 Paul lists the 7 motivational gifts. It may be that this list represents different personality profiles that God distributes within the body of Christ.
Over the years, many different personality guides have been developed in secular psychology. I have seen many of them. But by far the motivational gifts have helped me better understand myself and others more than any other system. It has helped me understand the people around me and grow to appreciate them.
I believe that each believer has one dominant motivational gift which becomes the window through which they view life. This basic motivation then shapes the way they respond to other people and how they approach their life situations. It shapes what grabs their attention, especially at church buisness meetings.
Understanding these basic motivations or personality types will help you understand yourself, your spouse, your family and friends and the people in your church community better. As this message unfolds, we will briefly look at the strengths and weakness of each grace gift and identify a biblical character that exemplifies each gift.
Take time to study this section carefully. I could write a separate section on each gift, but an overview will suffice. See which gift best describes you. Then identify someone in your family or church that best illustrates each gift. It would also be very helpful to identify which gift best describes your spouse.
1. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF PROPHECY: Romans 12:6
Example: Peter Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:9 Characteristics of this Gift:
1) Need to express themselves especially in matters where right and wrong are involved. (Acts 2:14; 3:12; 4:8) 2) Tend to make quick judgments on what they see and hear, and often speaks before others. (Matt 14:28; 16:16; 16:22; 17:14) 3) Very discerning of anything deceptive or dishonest and often reacts harshly. (Acts 5:3-10) 4) Strong desire for justice but very harsh on those who sin or fall short. (Matthew 18:21-22) 5) Usually open about personal faults and failures. (Luke 5:8) 6) Loyalty to truth over relationships. (John 6:67-69) 7) Willing to suffer for the truth and doing right. (Acts 5:29-42)
Weaknesses inherent in this gift:
1) Tendency to expose a sinful person without taking care to restore them to fellowship. (Gal. 6:1, Matt 18:21-22) 2) Draw conclusions with out all the facts. 3) Rebuke people without love and demand immediate repentance without much grace. 4) Can be extremely self critical and self-condemning. (Mark 16:7) 5) Can be impulsive and make quick decisions. (John 13:6-10) 6) Lack tactfulness and while being painfully direct with people. (Matthew 16:21-22) 7) See everything as right or wrong while dwelling on the negative in people while not letting go of their past.
2. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF SERVING: Romans 12:7a
Example: Timothy Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:10 Characteristics of this gift:
1. Quickly sees and meets the needs of others. (Phil 2:20) 2. Receives joy from freeing other to minister. (Phil 2:22) 3. Disregard of self in completing tasks for others. (Phil 2:30) 4. Over committed because can’t say “no”. 5. Alert to peoples likes and dislikes in buying gifts. 6. Needs approval and affirmation. 7. Enjoys short-range projects.
Weaknesses inherent in this gift.
1. Sometimes the task becomes more important than people. 2. Neglect home front to serve others. 3. Sacrifice personal health for service. 4. Neglect God given priorities to volunteer. 5. React to others who can’t see obvious needs to tackle. 6. Resent lack of appreciation from others. 7. Frustrated with time limits.
3. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF TEACHING: Romans 12:7b
Example: Luke Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:11 Characteristics of this gift.
1. Need validation of information. (Luke 1:4) 2. Check out background and credentials of teachers. (Luke 1:3) 3. Rely on established resources and teachers. (Acts 17:11) 4. Content presented in systematic and logical fashion. (Luke 1:3) 5. Take time to gather facts and research everything. (Acts 1:1) 6. Requires thoroughness in presenting details. 7. Tries to clarify misunderstandings.
Weaknesses inherent in this gift.
1. Potential to become proud of Knowledge. (I Cor. 8:1) 2. Despise people with less formal credentials. 3. Dependency on human reasoning. (I Cor. 1:20-31) 4. So literal they miss Spirit filled principles. (I Cor. 2:6-16) 5. Conform Scripture to a personal theological bias. 6. Thinking logically to extreme or unbalanced conclusions. 7. Arguing over minor points or monopolizing discussions.
4. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF EXHORTING: Romans 12:8a
Example: Paul Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:12 Characteristics of this gift:
1. Committed to seeing people grow and mature. (Col. 1:28) 2. Quickly discern hindrances to growth. (I Cor. 3:1-7) 3. Develop step by step plans to help people grow. (II Tim 2:22-23) 4. Shares personal motivational stories to encourage hope. 5. Can easily turn problems into benefits. (II Cor. 1:1-7) 6. Gains wisdom and insight from personal experience. 7. Seek sincere relational connection with people. (I Thess. 2:7-12)
Weaknesses inherent in this gift:
1. Sacrifice family and loved ones to serve others. 2. Tendency to became a “fix it” person in the lives of others. 3. Become proud or take credit for the growth of others. 4. Tendency to start new project without finishing old ones. 5. Turning people into projects rather than sincerely loving. 6. Becoming overly transparent in sharing private stories. 7. Avoid solid doctrine in favor or practical application.
5. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF GIVING: Romans 12:8b
Example: Matthew Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:13 Characteristics of this gift:
1. Can easily see resources needed for the work. 2. Often invests self with the gift. 3. Desire to give high quality for lasting value. 4. Desires that gift matches a special need. 5. Finds joy in giving secretly to worthwhile causes. 6. Exercises personal thriftiness and is fiscally conservative. 7. Uses giving approaches that motivate others to give.
Weaknesses inherent in gift:
1. Hording resources for self he if doesn’t believe in cause. 2. Using giving to control or manipulate others. 3. Feeling guilty about personal success or assets. 4. Give to projects instead of people. 5. Reject pressure appeals for giving. 6. Neglect providing for own family to have more to give. 7. Cause people to look to him for supply rather than God.
6. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF ORGANIZING: Romans 12:8c
Example: Nehemiah Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:14 Characteristics of this gift:
1. Able to visualize steps needed to complete task. (Neh. 2:7-8) 2. Need for loyalty in his team. (Neh. 5:1-13) 3. Ability to recruit others and delegate tasks. (Neh. 4:13) 4. Can withstand critics and opposition to task. (Neh. 4:8-18) 5. Breaks the project down to many easy small jobs. (Neh. 3:1-32) 6. Decisive and alert to details. 7. Perseveres through to completion and clean up.
Weaknesses inherent in gift:
1. Viewing people as resources to complete a task. 2 Showing favoritism to loyal people on the team. 3 Misusing delegation to avoid personal work. 4 Putting projects ahead of the value of people. 5 Overlooking workers faults or expressed needs. 6 Failure to clearly explain a process or give credit to others. 7 Forcing personal decisions or procedures on others.
7. MOTIVATIONAL GRACE OF MERCY: Romans 12:8d
Example: John Guiding Scripture: Romans 12:15 Characteristic of the gift:
1. Deep loyalty to and defense of friends. (Luke 9:54) 2. Need for deep and affirming friendships. (John 21:7 &20) 3. Empathize with hurting people. 4. Tries not to hurt or offend people. 5. Attract people in distress or in crisis. 6. Measures acceptance by closeness. 7. Values the firmness of mature prophets.
Weaknesses inherent in gift.
1. Take up the offenses of someone being hurt. 2. Overlook faults to make things better for people. 3. Failure to be firm with people in pointing out sin. 4. Leaning on emotions rather than reason. 5. Becoming emotionally attached to those being counseled… which opens a door for temptation. 6. Bailing people out of the personal consequences of sin. 7. Cutting off insensitive people who are to hard on others.
As you look this list, you might notice that some people might be wired in such a way as to have conflict with others with different motivations. This is especially true for the person with a prophecy motivation and the person with the grace motivation.
Many church splits are rooted in different motivational gifts. The mercy person sees the prophecy person as being to rigid and hard on people. The prophet is very black and white. Likewise, the prophecy person sees the mercy person as being too lenient on the failures of others and way too compassionate. The mercy person is almost blind to faults in others. Meanwhile, the giver complains that everyone is wasting money on needless things.
The truth is that opposites are needed in the body of Christ. Each of the seven lenses are important to a healthy church.
As you grow and mature “in Christ”, you will develop character qualities related to each grace gift, but one will most likely remain predominant. You will also begin to value people you previously shunned. They will cover your back in area’s that don’t even come up on your radar screen!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
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