Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: GPL
Program Code: GPL000015
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00:01 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn.
00:02 Do you know how the Holy Spirit applies God's word 00:05 as the launderer's soap to sanctify us? 00:08 Join us now to learn what the bible says about this. 00:33 Welcome to "The Grace Pipeline." 00:35 This is a Bible study series 00:37 that is based on a book by the same title. 00:40 And if you're following along in your companion book, 00:43 today we're going to continue 00:45 our study on the launderer's soap. 00:48 We're beginning in chapter 8, page 122. 00:51 In previous programs, we have studied how the Father, 00:55 the Son, and the Holy Spirit work to sanctify us, 00:59 to set us apart from sin. 01:01 Today, we will learn the power of sanctifying grace 01:05 that is ours also, through the Scriptures 01:08 applied to our daily lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. 01:12 The secret to sanctification 01:15 is to learn to live in this power of surrender. 01:19 Let me explain. 01:20 One day when I was praying, 01:22 I was wrestling with the Lord like the patriarch Jacob had. 01:26 And I cried out and I said, "Please, Lord, 01:29 show me how to walk in surrender as Jesus walked. 01:32 I will not let you go unless you bless me 01:35 with a changed character, 01:37 cause me to follow in Christ's footsteps." 01:40 And instantly in my mind, 01:42 I saw this gigantic elephant and next to him 01:46 was a tiny little sugar ant, hardly visible. 01:49 As I wondered what this meant, 01:52 I suddenly heard the still small voice of the Lord 01:55 whisper a thought to my mind. 01:58 And He said, "Shelley, 01:59 the greatest strength you can muster 02:02 is like that of the tiny ant, whereas My power 02:06 is by comparison like that of the elephant. 02:09 Why would you want to walk in your limited human strength 02:14 when I make My power available to you? 02:17 When I ask you to surrender, child, 02:20 I'm asking you to accept My power." 02:25 Galatians 3:3 suddenly came to my mind 02:28 where Paul asks-- he said, 02:29 "You foolish, Galatians. 02:31 Having begun in the Spirit, 02:33 are you now being made perfect by the flesh?" 02:37 Yes, I had been so foolish 02:39 trying my utmost to walk with God. 02:41 I had been drawing only on my own sugar ant strength. 02:46 It was like that tiny insect 02:48 trying to roll a boulder up a hill. 02:51 But now I realize each morning of my life, 02:54 I face a decision which determines 02:57 whether I walk as a pitiful 02:59 or a powerful Christian that day. 03:02 If I attempt to perfect my walk 03:06 by the strength of my flesh 03:07 I am to be pitied as I limp along, 03:10 hobbled by self-destructive habits. 03:13 But if I choose to walk in the power of the Spirit, 03:16 I can run the race of faith with joy. 03:20 To be yoked to Christ is to be yoked 03:23 to that elephantine power of the Holy Spirit. 03:28 So in your mind's eye, 03:30 just get an image of that for just a moment. 03:33 A sugar ant yoked to an elephant. 03:36 Who's carrying the load? 03:38 Can you see that tiny little ant 03:40 with its tiny little legs squirming about, 03:44 demanding to be released so that he could 03:46 perform the task of rolling the boulder on his own? 03:50 How often have we insisted on having our own way 03:54 and reaped the exhausting and empty results? 03:57 It is not by might or power, 04:00 but by the Spirit of the Lord 04:02 that we can live the life of a Christian. 04:05 Our greatest human strength 04:07 is comparable to that of the little sugar ant. 04:10 Only the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit 04:13 will suffice unto salvation. 04:17 Now as we consider what our loving Lord has done for us, 04:21 it should create in us a thirst for righteousness. 04:25 If we continually draw from God's well of salvation, 04:30 the living water of the Holy Spirit 04:32 will fulfill our need. 04:34 And His sparkling presence flowing through us 04:38 will cleanse away sin's influence. 04:41 His revitalizing power will live-- 04:45 help us to live a life of righteousness 04:48 as we daily choose to die 04:50 to self-interests and live for God. 04:55 Isaiah spoke of God's tender care for His people 04:58 saying in Isaiah 63:9 that, 05:02 "God lifted them up and carried them all the days of old." 05:07 You know, God's method of salvation by grace 05:10 remains the same today as in the days of old. 05:14 And obedience is also still a factor. 05:17 Romans 6, tells us that, 05:19 "Obedience leads to righteousness." 05:22 When we are yoked with the Lord, 05:24 our life of obedience is not a struggle. 05:28 Sanctifying grace grants us a treasury of power, 05:33 God's power to overcome our rebellious tendencies 05:37 and to walk in righteousness, resulting in peace. 05:41 Listen to the echo of God's love 05:43 as He calls us to obedience by grace in Isaiah 48:18. 05:51 He says, "Oh, that you had heeded My commandments. 05:56 Then your peace would have been like a river, 05:59 and your righteousness like the waves of the sea." 06:04 God's commandments embody the essence of His grace, 06:09 for He empowers us to do all that He requires of us. 06:14 The apostle Paul clearly identified the Holy Spirit 06:18 as a sustaining grace of sanctification, 06:21 pointing to Him as our only hope 06:24 to overcome the carnal mind. 06:27 In Romans 8:7-10, Paul wrote, 06:31 "The carnal mind is enmity against God, 06:35 for it is not subject to the law of God, nor can it be. 06:39 So then those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 06:43 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, 06:47 if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. 06:50 Now if anyone does not have 06:53 the Spirit of Christ, He is not His. 06:56 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, 07:01 but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." 07:07 We need to pray for the Holy Spirit. 07:11 You're most likely familiar with Luke 11:9 07:14 where Jesus asks us or instructs us 07:18 to "Ask, to seek, and to knock." 07:20 Now in the original Greek language, 07:23 these are linear verbs. 07:25 They just keep going in a straight line without end. 07:29 So that Luke 11:9 is better translated, 07:32 ask and keep on asking and it shall be given to you. 07:36 Seek and keep on seeking and you shall find. 07:40 Knock and keep on knocking 07:43 and the door shall be opened to you. 07:46 And then a few verses later, 07:47 Jesus tells us what we are to ask for, 07:50 saying in Luke 11:13, 07:53 "How much more will your heavenly Father 07:56 give the Holy Spirit to those who ask," 08:00 and continue to ask Him. 08:03 Who can receive the Spirit? 08:06 Acts 5:32 tells us something interesting. 08:10 It says, "We are His witnesses to these things, 08:14 and so also is the Holy Spirit 08:16 whom God has given to those who obey Him." 08:22 You see, when we walk in Spirit empowered obedience, 08:26 God makes grace abound by giving us 08:30 a greater measure of His Spirit. 08:32 Let me offer this illustration to explain. 08:35 If you took a gallon jar and you filled it 08:38 with extremely muddied water, 08:40 then you poured out a fourth of its contents 08:43 and you added sparkling water to replace that. 08:46 You would be left with a less muddied mixture. 08:49 If you again poured out a fourth of the mixture 08:52 and added more sparkling water, 08:53 the contents would become still clear. 08:57 And through repetition of this process, 09:00 you would eventually achieve a container of pure water. 09:04 In like manner, only to the degree 09:06 that we're emptied of self, 09:09 can we be filled with the Spirit. 09:12 His inward work of grace will change our outward walk. 09:18 There's only one man who has walked this earth 09:22 possessing the Spirit without measure and that was Jesus. 09:26 In John 3:34, Bible says, 09:31 "For since He whom God sent speaks the words of God," 09:35 proclaims God's own message. 09:37 "God does not give him 09:39 His Spirit sparingly or by measure. 09:42 But boundless is the gift God makes of His Spirit." 09:46 Christ was filled with the fullness of the Spirit 09:50 because He walked in perfect obedience. 09:53 And out of His fullness we receive grace upon grace, 09:59 one spiritual blessing heaped on top of another, 10:03 as we walk in obedience to His truths. 10:06 You know, John 1:1-4 and then verse 14, 10:11 the Apostle writes, "In the beginning was the Word 10:14 and the Word was with God and the Word was God. 10:18 And all things were made through Him. 10:21 In Him was life and that life was the light of men. 10:25 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, 10:29 and we beheld His glory, 10:30 the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 10:35 full of grace and truth." 10:39 According to rabbinical tradition, 10:43 light was a name for the Messiah, 10:45 for light dwells with Him. 10:47 In John 8:12, Jesus-- 10:51 He's at the ceremony of lights 10:53 on the first day of the Feast of the Tabernacles. 10:56 And He stood in the temple court and He cried out, 10:59 "I am the light of the world. 11:02 He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness 11:06 but will have the light of life." 11:09 It is fitting that the word light 11:11 is also symbolic for the written word of God. 11:15 For it emanates from the living 11:17 Lord Jesus Christ and brings life. 11:20 Psalm 119:105 says, "God's word is a lamp to our feet 11:26 and a light to our path." 11:27 And in a world that is shrouded with the darkness of sin, 11:32 we need the light of life to guide us 11:36 to the narrow gate of salvation. 11:39 The power of sanctifying grace is ours through Scripture. 11:44 When the light of His word operates in our heart, 11:48 it separates us from the darkness of sin. 11:51 In other words, Scripture sanctifies us 11:54 just as Jesus prayed in John 17:17. 11:59 He said, "Sanctify them by Your truth. 12:03 Your word is truth." 12:06 There in the garden of Gethsemane 12:09 with His eyes lifted to heaven 12:11 and His disciples surrounding Him, 12:13 Christ prayed that all of His followers 12:17 would be sanctified by God's word. 12:20 He knew the word was a living and active force. 12:24 He had sspoken the world 12:26 into existence by His power filled word. 12:30 Christ alone understood the coming event of Calvary 12:34 and His sacrifice would open the way 12:36 to restore our relationship with the Father. 12:40 But He knew the work of salvation 12:42 would continue beyond the cross. 12:45 Remnants of our old carnal nature 12:48 remain after the new birth experience, 12:51 so Christ knew we would need greater power 12:54 to renew our minds and be rid of bad habits. 12:58 Christ was aware that only 13:01 the transforming power of God's truth 13:04 could complete His work of sanctification 13:06 to liberate us from sin's bondage. 13:09 He said in John 8:31-32, 13:12 "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 13:17 And then you shall know the truth, 13:19 and the truth shall make you free." 13:21 Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:15-17 that, 13:25 "The Holy Scriptures are able to make us 13:29 wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." 13:34 He confirmed that, "All Scripture 13:36 is given by inspiration of God 13:40 and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, 13:44 for instruction in righteousness 13:46 that the Christian may be complete 13:49 and thoroughly equipped in every good work." 13:52 Paul also wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:16 that, 13:57 "We have the mind of Christ." 14:01 What a gift the God inspired Scriptures are to us. 14:06 They equip us with divine power 14:09 for salvation through Christ our wisdom. 14:12 He gave us His word that we may know His mind. 14:17 So the more we saturate our minds with Scripture, 14:20 the more we will operate with the mind of Christ. 14:23 If we meet the condition, 14:25 the promise of James 1:21 is ours and here's what it says, 14:31 "Therefore lay aside all filthiness 14:35 and overflow of wickedness, 14:37 and receive with meekness the implanted word, 14:41 which is able to save your souls." 14:46 As you read the Scriptures, 14:48 pray that God will sanctify you by His word. 14:51 The word planted and rooted in your heart, 14:55 mysteriously grows with this divine cause 14:58 of cleansing us of sin 15:01 and recreating Christ' righteous character in us. 15:05 Jesus compared this process to planting seed 15:08 in good ground that sprouts 15:11 and it grows to yield a hundred fold return. 15:15 Our work is to plant the word, God's word. 15:20 And then God's work is to give the increase of growth. 15:24 The divine affects of the word 15:26 begin to work over a period of time 15:29 without our conscious awareness. 15:31 We plant a promise of God 15:33 that one day as Christ said in Mark 4-28, 15:36 "It yields a crop by itself, first the blade, then the head, 15:41 and then the full grain in the head." 15:44 First our thoughts are changed, 15:46 then our actions, and finally our habits. 15:51 Scripture points out our sins 15:54 and the pledge of God's sure promise is to change us, 15:58 correcting our misguided path 16:00 by revealing the better way of His righteousness. 16:04 Our personal application of the word 16:07 causes it to be rooted in our heart. 16:09 And it springs forth under the operation 16:12 of God's sanctifying power to set us apart from sin. 16:16 Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her. 16:19 Paul said in Ephesians 5:25-27, 16:24 "That He might sanctify and cleanse her 16:27 with the washing of water by the word, 16:30 so that He could present her without spot or wrinkle, 16:34 making her holy and without blemish." 16:37 This process of God's work and sanctification 16:41 is expressed in Malachi 3:2 where it says. 16:46 "He is like a refiner's fire and like lauderer's soap." 16:53 Scripture is the launderer's soap. 16:57 The living water of the Holy Spirit 17:00 works to help us comprehend God's spiritual words 17:03 and to put the word into daily practice. 17:07 He applies Scripture to scrub away the soil of sin. 17:11 Then He flows through us 17:13 to achieve a purifying and spotless rinse 17:17 that we may be rid of sin's residue. 17:20 And as these two divine agents of grace work in harmony 17:24 to empower our actions of faith, 17:28 we develop the mind of Christ. 17:30 And we learn what to do as 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us, 17:36 "That we learn to take every thought captive 17:39 and make it obedient to Christ." 17:42 We become one with Him in thought, purpose, and action. 17:48 This is where James tells us in 1:22 that--he says, 17:52 "But be doers of the word, 17:55 not just hearers only, deceiving yourself." 17:59 You know, James explains that as we look into the word, 18:04 we see a reflection of our unappealing natural self. 18:09 Yet through the pledge of God's promises, 18:12 we see also the reflection of the new creation, 18:16 the new creature that we are in Christ. 18:19 Now if we walk away from the mirror of the word 18:22 without putting it into practice 18:25 we have our newly recreated image, 18:28 we just forget about it and there's no change 18:31 that takes place in our character. 18:33 If we disregard the Scriptures, 18:36 our spiritual growth is retarded. 18:39 That's why Christ asked in Luke 6:46. 18:44 He says, "Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' 18:47 and do not practice what I tell you?" 18:50 And then He said in Luke 11:28, 18:53 "Blessed are those who hear the word of God 18:57 and obey and practice." 19:00 May God help us appreciate His word 19:04 as a great preservative from evil 19:07 and an even greater force for change 19:09 as we accept it by faith. 19:12 Faith without actions is dead. 19:15 But God promises to bless the one 19:18 who puts His word into practice. 19:20 And we can put into practice 19:22 what we behold from the bible and be transformed. 19:26 Let me read you from 2 Corinthians 3:18 and it says, 19:32 "And all of us, as with unveiled face, 19:36 because we continued to behold 19:38 in the Word of God as in a mirror the glory of God, 19:42 are constantly being transfigured," 19:45 or transformed, "into His very own image 19:49 in ever increasing splendor 19:51 and from one degree of glory to another, 19:54 for this comes from the Lord Who is the Spirit." 19:59 What does this Scripture tell us? 20:02 It tells us that we become what we behold. 20:05 And as we behold the character of Christ in the word of God, 20:10 the Holy Spirit applies 20:12 the transforming power of Scripture 20:15 in the work of sanctification. 20:17 Step by step, He works with us to develop our character, 20:22 taking us from one level of Christ's glory 20:26 or His character to the next level. 20:30 The renewal of our mind fulfills our destiny 20:33 to be conformed to the image of Jesus. 20:36 Let me show you another powerful promise. 20:38 This is 2 Peter 1:3-4, one of my favorites and it reads, 20:45 "His divine power has given to us 20:49 all things that pertain to life and godliness, 20:53 through the knowledge of Him 20:55 who called us by glory and virtue, by which," 20:59 by His glory and virtue, "have been given to us 21:03 exceedingly great and precious promises 21:08 so that through these," through these promises, 21:12 "you may be partakers of the divine nature, 21:15 having escaped the corruption 21:18 that is in the world through lust." 21:21 Wow, I love this promise. 21:23 He's saying by the glory and virtue of God 21:25 and through His divine power of grace, 21:29 we've been given marvelous promises 21:32 of all He will accomplish according to His perfect will, 21:36 if we grant Him permission. 21:39 And we become partakers of His divine nature 21:43 through His promises, through the word. 21:46 2 Corinthians 1:20 tells us that, 21:49 "All of God's promises are ours," 21:51 if we abide in Christ. 21:54 So through a personal faith application of these promises 21:58 that contain the power of God unto salvation 22:02 we share in His divine character. 22:05 Further, the sustaining power of His Spirit 22:09 and His word protects us from evil. 22:13 What a promise. 22:15 You know, the Lord provides everything necessary 22:18 for the development of our godliness. 22:21 His work of sanctification is our assurance of salvation. 22:27 God does His promised part and the apostle Peter tells-- 22:33 continues this passage to tell-- 22:36 explain to us that we must do our work, 22:39 our part in the work of sanctification. 22:41 Let's read that 2 Peter 1:5-9, continuing he says, 22:46 "But also for this very reason," 22:48 because God's provided everything to us." 22:51 He says, "Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, 22:56 knowledge, self control, perseverance, godliness, 23:00 brotherly kindness and love. 23:02 For if these things are yours and abound 23:06 you will be neither barren nor unfruitful 23:10 in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 23:14 For he who lacks these things 23:16 is shortsighted, even to blindness, 23:20 and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 23:25 Therefore, be even more diligent 23:29 to make your call and election sure." 23:33 He uses "diligence' twice in this Scripture passage. 23:37 And here Peter is reinforcing 23:40 God's principle of required obedience, 23:43 warning that whoever forgets 23:46 the cost of grace, the agony of Calvary 23:50 by which we were justified from our past sins, 23:53 whoever forgets the cost of grace is blinded 23:57 to the needful work of sanctification. 24:01 He concluded his letter with a description 24:05 of the fiery destruction of this world 24:08 and with a promise of the new earth 24:11 in which righteousness dwells. 24:14 He ends with this admonition 24:17 in 2 Peter 3:14, 17 and 18, 24:23 "Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, 24:27 be diligent to be found by Him in peace, 24:32 without spot and blameless, 24:35 beware lest you also fall from your own steadfasteness, 24:39 being led away with the error of the wicked, 24:43 but grow in the grace and knowledge 24:47 of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 24:51 If you desire an abiding and connected relationship 24:56 with Jesus Christ, the living Word, 24:59 develop an abiding relationship 25:02 with the bible, the written word. 25:05 This action is vital to grow in grace. 25:09 The sanctifying power of Scripture 25:12 will affect a moral influence on your heart and your habits. 25:17 His word works to restore His image, 25:22 to restore His mind and His character in you. 25:26 The ultimate perfection of your character 25:29 comes by the gift of the Holy Scriptures, 25:33 as the power of the Holy Spirit 25:36 strengthens you to put them into practice. 25:39 Let me read for you from Hebrews 10:35 and 36, 25:46 which says, "Therefore do not cast away your confidence, 25:52 which has great reward. 25:54 For you have need of endurance, 25:57 so that after you have done the will of God, 26:00 you may receive the promise." 26:05 God's love is unconditional, 26:07 but He sets parameters around His promises. 26:11 First, we must be in Christ 26:14 to be given His promised blessings. 26:16 This means we are obliged to surrender our will to God 26:21 and allow Jesus to live in our hearts by faith 26:25 through the infilling of the Holy Spirit. 26:29 Secondly, we receive God's promises through faith alone 26:34 which we will further consider in our next program. 26:38 Finally, we must be-- walk in obedience. 26:43 Obedience to God's will to receive 26:46 His promise of eternal life. 26:49 Readiness to obey shows we are living 26:53 in a right relationship with our heavenly Father. 26:56 As we comply with God's conditions 26:59 becoming sanctification seekers. 27:03 We can be confident. 27:05 He will be faithful in carrying out His part of the agreement. 27:10 Sanctification seekers pursue holiness 27:15 by surrendering to the power of the indwelling Spirit, 27:19 in His love and in His pity. 27:23 Just as He did in the days of old, 27:25 He will lift us up and carry us on to victory. 27:29 Sanctification seekers pursue holiness 27:32 by engaging in regular bible study 27:36 to become skilled in the word of righteousness. 27:39 And as the Spirit applies the launderer's soap, 27:43 the transforming power of His word will sanctify us. 27:47 That's God's promise. 27:49 Join us next time, as we begin our study on faith. 27:52 And until then, our prayer is that 27:55 you will grow in grace and in the knowledge 27:57 of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. |
Revised 2014-12-17