Home »
Grace takes you from where you are to where God wants you to be. It is a pilgrimage in the leadership of God.
He is the exalted Head of all
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the majesty; for all that is in heaven and earth is yours;Yours is the kingdom O Lord, and you are exalted as Head over all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you reign over all. In your hand is power and might; in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. [1 Chronicles 29:11,12]
This prayer of David acknowledges the Headship of God over all. And in the new covenant, the dispensation of grace that is in operation now, Christ is the exalted Head over all. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, whose fullness fills you, when you are the church, which is His body. He fills you that you may be complete, and therefore doing His will is not something you are pressured into doing. Rather it becomes a very pleasurable experience, even as the psalmist declares, I delight to do your will, O my God. [Psalms 40:8]
How is it possible?
The psalmist, David, in the same verse, gives the key to it, as he goes on to say, And your word is written in my heart. [Psalms 40:8]
The Holy Spirit and God’s Word
They are like the two rails of a railway track, both of which are indispensable for the safe running of the train that takes you to your destination. In the beginning, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, the Spirit was hovering over the waters, and God spoke the word, ‘Let there be light’. And there was light. In your new creation, the Spirit quickens the word of God in your heart and put simply, it is your salvation. The Holy Spirit then comes to dwell in your heart, your spirit. And what He is able to do within you is expressed in David’s prayer. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God let your good Spirit lead me on a level path [Psalms 143:10] or lead me in the land of uprightness. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, [John 6:13] Spirit of power, [Acts 1:8] one of love, [Romans 5:5] and one of wisdom. [Isaiah 11:2] And wondrously inclusive of all this, He is the good and gracious Spirit in you who leads you on level ground to a place of uprightness. He does this as He teaches and instructs you.
The Holy Spirit is a Teacher
He teaches and instructs you when you need to make a right decision. You will hear a voice speaking through the word of God saying. ‘This is the way, walk in it ‘ and also warning you of the dangers that you need to steer clear of in order to reach your destination, the place of uprightness. And if you do not know what to do, but also want to know what to do, you are in the right position to receive the guidance of the Spirit.
He begins to illuminate you
The entrance [the unfolding] of your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple. [Psalms 119:130] The light is the revelation knowledge from God that dispels the darkness or ignorance concerning your situation, to bring clarity and the right perspective that you need. It happens as the word of God and a revelation from the Spirit leads you in the path of understanding and a divine discernment.
The need for discernment
The psalmist David very eloquently describes the nature of the people who deceived to cause him harm. It was not through open combat; rather it was- With speech smoother than butter, but with a heart set on war; With words that were softer than oil, but in fact were drawn swords. [Psalms 55:21]
Such people are still around!
And God gives you the right instruction, for He leads you by instruction. Heeding it will see you gain discernment, while disregarding it will find you falling for the sweet talk of a person which ultimately leads to destruction and pain.
The dialogue – internal and external
But external trappings will not lead you astray when you listen to the inner dialogue that goes on between your spirit and the Holy Spirit, even as you are conversing audibly with a person on the outside. For, there may be things in his heart which the person may be withholding and not revealing to you. But the Holy Spirit will instruct you, giving you the discernment that you need, for there is nothing that is hidden from His eyes.
Philip and the Ethiopian minister
In Acts chapter 8, the Bible introduces a person – he is a high ranking treasury official from Ethiopia, in modern parlance, the finance minister of the nation. And studying the miraculous event that took place in his life, one that flooded him with joy, gives rich insights that can be applied even today in a person’s life, for God shows no partiality and Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever.
A personal involvement in God’s Word
Not being a Jew he could not enter the holy courts of the Jerusalem Temple. But knowing it all, the Ethiopian minister had come a long way seeking to worship the true Living God. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot he was reading the prophet Isaiah. [Acts 8:28,29]
The verse above teaches a valuable principle – the need to spend time studying the word of God personally on your own. For the Spirit will respond – by taking what you are studying and applying it in your own life’s circumstance – in a manner that is uniquely personal and relevant. It may be a familiar passage but the Lord gives new grace concerning it each new day. When you study it with personal involvement and sensitivity to the leading of the Holy Spirit, the verse, The Lord is my shepherd; and I shall not want [Psalms 23:1] can speak to you in a manner that is specific and very relevant to your life’s happenings at that point of time.
‘Do you understand?’
Then the Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go over to this chariot and join it’. So Philip ran over to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ [Acts 8:29:30] Philip’s question is what you need to ask yourself too, for only an understanding of God’s word can bring a change. And it requires in you an attitude of humility.
The attitude of humility
Having the right attitude, one of humility, the Ethiopian official acknowledges his need as he invites Philip saying – ‘How can I unless someone guides me?’ and he invited Philip to get in and sit with him. [vs 31] Even in your life’s decisions and questions, you always need the guidance of the Spirit and God’s word. Relying on your own personal life experiences, however vast they may be will surely lead you in the wrong path at some point or the other. You need the experience and the wisdom of the Only Wise God.
Remember that the devil has more experience than any human being in the planet! And it is only when you rely on the Holy Spirit in you, that you can say, ‘Greater is He who is in me than he that is in the world’. Acknowledge the Lord therefore in all your ways, and He will make your paths straight. Your attitude needs to be one of making time to sit and study the word of God in the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Merely reading the word of God will never be sufficient.
The Spirit poured out on all flesh
Unlike the old covenant where the anointing of the Spirit was restricted to the offices of prophet, priest and king, and was temporary, the glory of the new covenant is the outpouring and infilling of the Spirit in every person who is born again of the Spirit. The One who wrote the scriptures is then living within you. And it is by instruction that He leads you. He teaches you one step at a time through the word of God.
Therefore as you study God’s word, instead of waiting to hear an external voice, wait for a particular verse to speak to you. Even as you listen to the teaching of God’s word, let the Holy Spirit confirm what you consider is God’s counsel to you. False prophecies should not lead you in the wrong direction. Develop the gift of discernment that comes from the Spirit, to be led wisely, to distinguish whether a prophecy is genuinely from the Lord.
Be in a listening mode
Let your prayer time be not just a monologue, a one way process. Spend time also in listening to what God has to say to you He knows all that you are in need of. And it is not when you speak your problem, but it is when you speak His promised word concerning it, that your problem begins to change and prosperity comes into your life.
Your attitude – the key:
Your attitude is the key to receiving guidance from God – having an attitude of trusting God with all your heart and needing to hear from Him. If you want to learn from Him, He will certainly speak to you. And when you study the word of God, at any time, sometimes it can be in just a second, a revelation thought from God can come, and you will see what has been bothering you for a long time vanish, as He gives understanding.
‘What stands in my way ?’
As Philip explained the scriptures to him, God spoke in the heart of the Ethiopian. And receiving with joy the revelation truth of Christ, the Son of God, he then asked Philip- ‘What hinders me from being baptized?’.And Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart [have understanding] you may. [Acts 8:36,37]
Believing comes through understanding the scriptures. It shows you what to believe and why. And then nothing can stand in your way.
The Ethiopian official went home rejoicing
The Ethiopian treasury official went home rejoicing, and history records that he was the instrument in God’s hands to carry the good news of the Gospel to his country. Ethiopia then went on to become the very first Christian nation in the continent of Africa.
And whatever is a hindrance in your life right now, this is God’s word of promise to you.
Nothing will stand in your way
It will be your experience as the Spirit illuminates God’s word in your life, to lead you on level ground, to the place of uprightness. Your attitude is the key. Let it be one that says unto the Lord, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’. And hearing Him, when you understand the truth you will stand, and nothing will stand in the way of your progress, as He takes you to the place where He wants you to be. Nothing is powerful enough to stand against the truth of God’s word. May the Holy Spirit lead and guide you, as He fills you with the understanding of God’s word. In the Name of Christ Jesus Amen.
