Tag: heart ears

18.l. “You are not your own”

John 14:25  “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

 1 Corinthians 2:10-13   Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

 2 Timothy 1:14    By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

 1 Corinthians 6:19   Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

 Ephesians 4:30    And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

 Acts 7:51    “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.

The Holy Spirit is given by God to those who have believed in Jesus Christ for salvation, redemption, and forgiveness.  The Holy Spirit is given to us by God to lead us, to help us understand, to help us remember, and to teach us.  The Holy Spirit of God indwells those who believe and this is why Paul says to be mindful that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you.  In this simple statement Paul is saying; would you expose or allow into the temple to hate, greed, and anger when the temple is to be a place of love, joy, and generosity?  Would you expose or allow into the temple pornography, lust, and adultery when it is to be a place of purity, holiness, and righteousness?  Would you expose the temple to pride, self-reliance, and self-worth when it is to be a place of humbleness, surrender, and reliance in Jesus Christ alone?  Would you expose or allow into the temple drunkenness when it is to be a place of sober-minded holiness?  Would you expose or allow into the temple homosexuality and abortion when it is to be a place of purity and protector of life?  

When you imagine allowing these into the temple surely you see this is more than foolish it is a direct rejection of God’s plan for the temple.  We were redeemed at a great price.  God’s only Son suffered and died so that he could redeem us from eternal hell.  He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within each believer, making each of our bodies a temple of the Holy Spirit.  How then must we think, do, and act?  Should we not protect this temple from invaders, robbers, liars, haters, and false promises?  

The Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth but surely we must spend time in holy reverence cultivating God’s Word and deeply desire and seek this leading.

Until there was no remedy

“Will you not receive instruction and listen to my words? declares the LORD.”

“But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.”

Hosea 11:2   The more they were called, the more they went away;

Acts 7:51    “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.

Deuteronomy 29:2-4      And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land,  the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders.  But to this day the LORD has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.

2 Kings 17:13-15     Yet the LORD warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”  But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God.

2 Chronicles 36:15-16     The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place.  But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against his people, until there was no remedy.

Nehemiah 9:30    Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear.

Isaiah 30:9-11     For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the LORD

Jeremiah 44:16-17     “As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you.

Zechariah 7:11     But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear.

John 3:19     And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light

It might be easy to think these verses refer to the lost sinners who do not know God, but these speak to those who did know God and rejected His leading.  When we neglect His word and the need for it to meet each day we become complacent coma  and our ears become deaf to His instruction and leading.  Soon the path we are on is one that looks good in our own eyes.  We are void of God’s word.  Our mind is being led by what we think is right and not by the word of God.

It is a dangerous slope to neglect His word and think for a moment we can find light, refuge, hope, rest, refuge, peace, or strength to fight our internal sinful nature and attacks from satan.  Neglect is a choice.  Neglect, whether we want to admit it or not, is a choice saying I don’t need His direction or His word in my life today, “I’ll be ok today”.   This slippery slope is hard to climb back up because first it must be recognized as a self centered and self trusting sin.  If this is recognized, repentance (turning away) is a choice.

Note the words of warning given in these scriptures – how sad to be in a place where the daily need of God in our life is not even a thought, unless things are going bad.  How sad to be there so long that it would be said “there was no remedy”.

Be assured, neglect of His word does not end well.  It leaves open to be influenced by culture or what seems right in our own eyes.  Reflect on this.  If you are finding this is the place where you are at – recognize, repent and choose to start fresh.  Choose to keep His word active in your day.  Seek and desire to hear God’s leading and direction.  Above all humbly serve, honor, glorify, follow and obey Him in all that you say and do.