Wednesday, April 2, 2014

AOT 3: Advancing with the Gospel

How do we live a life that Glorifies God?

Gate 6 Fountain Gate – Holy Spirit

     Living the Highest Life. . . . .
            
What does it mean when we say “Living the Highest life.”?
Does it mean living in luxury? Or living in fame?  How can we consider one who is living the highest life?

In order to answer this question, let us back track and learn about life. Let us learn about man. Let us learn and understand who Christ is, his plan for us to live, really live for him.

Let us begin by taking a look at the Bio-Zoe-logical chart

Biology- the science and the study of life
Zoe- Greek word for life

·         God- the highest life form in the universe
He is Non- dimensional. (There’s no height, length, depth, height or size. He is IMMESUARABLE.)
He created the spiritual realm. This realm came to existence before space-time and is outside the measurements and concepts of time.
GOD STANDS OUTSIDE OF TIME.     

This, for us, is hard to understand because we are creatures of time, space, and dimension. We are FINITE  or LIMITED.
·         Angels- the highest created life form
    Doesn’t have souls
·         Man- the only creature who is hybrid

God created man with:
1.        Body
2.      Soul- human life
Set up relationships with all things in the visible realm
Helps relate to the physical or visible realm
3.      Spirit- God breathed into man and gave him a spirit
Man’s spirit was supposed to be the CONTAINER OF GOD’S SPIRIT (LIFE)
This is the secret to our Christian walk

·         Animals- have souls but doesn’t have a spirit

SOUL- the life form that belongs to the physical realm. Helps relate to the physical world
SPIRIT- the life form that belongs to the spiritual realm

·         Plants-

Let us take a look at Adam
·         Unfallen Adam- (Perfect body, soul  and spirit)
  The soul before was submissive to the spirit
·         Fallen Adam- (Fallen body, Mutated soul and dead spirit)
The soul mutated and the spirit died and so our soul dominated us.

The Effect of sinning was that:
·         Man’s spirit died to the spiritual realm (it was cut off)
·         Adam could no longer see the unseen or hear the unseen
·         Man became a creature of the physical realm.( he began to relate more to his soul  than to his spirit)
·         He moved closer to becoming an animal
·         His soul began trying to do the things that normally the spirit would do. Man began to reach out to God through his soul. (Mind, will and emotions)
·          He began to think that doing good is what would please God
·         Man now had the knowledge of good and evil
·         Both evil and the desire to do good lived in man driving him mad
·         He has now the element of a fallen angel. Life form living in him that is greater than he is and holds him prisoner
·         There is now the cycle of life to try to please, do, be legalistic in order to get in favor with God.


 But….
Because of God’s love, He sent His one and only son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

                When we believed Jesus Christ as our personal savoir, we have been re-generated (made alive, made new); our spirit has been resurrected. Our soul has been cleaned. Our soul is in the presence of a resurrected spirit and is being changed by this new life and by the word of God. Our spirit has been made one with His spirit. And as I received Christ “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me the life I live in the body I live by faith in the son who loved me and gave himself for me.”(Galatians 2:20) Not “I” but “Christ.” dying to self and self-attitudes. His Will NOT our will.
               
 Let us make it clear, that WE CAN’T LIVE THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. It is God’s life poured in us that lives the Christian life. For without CHRIST, we are NOTHING. That’s the Fact.
                Only one thing prevents Jesus from filling our hearts with His spirit with overflowing, and that is sin in one of its thousand forms. The Lord Jesus doesn’t fill dirty cups. Anything that springs from self, however small it may be is sin. It is not an accident that Dung Gate(Confession) comes first before Fountain Gate( Holy Spirit) because we can’t live the highest life if we haven’t yet confessed to God our sin- the only thing that prevents Jesus from filling our hearts with his spirit.

                Living full of God’s spirit is to live the highest life. It is to live with and by the indwelling of the Lord. Christ in Us.

-          Vijoren , 16 (Mangagoy, Surigao)